Gov. John Bel Edwards has made clear in recent weeks that while he strongly opposes abortion, he thinks Louisianโs sweeping ban on the procedure should have exceptions for survivors of rape and incest.
But that belief hasnโt stopped Edwards โ a Democrat who won an improbable two terms as governor in part by spotlighting his pro-life bona fides โ from signing strict anti-abortion laws that did not include such exceptions. And he may not be done, even with the stakes rising this year. Edwards appears likely to sign a bill passed overwhelmingly by the Legislature in the recently ended session that would strengthen Louisianโs 2006 โtrigger law.โ That law immediately bans abortions in Louisiana if the U.S. Supreme Court, as expected, overturns Roe v. Wade.
The new bill would ensure doctors are subjected to jail time if they perform abortions at any point, with exceptions only for instances where the motherโs life is at risk or the fetus is โmedically futile,โ including an ectopic pregnancy.
In a recent press conference, Edwards seemed to acknowledge that some of his past actions on abortion were opportunistic. Before it became clear Roe would potentially be overturned, the abortion debate at the Legislature was โlargely an academic exercise.โ Though he didnโt say it, signing extreme pro-life measures has had political benefit, especially for a Democrat in a solidly red state.
Edwards made plain his discomfort with the new bill, acknowledging that once-theoretical restrictions are going to become โmore realโ if Roe is finally toppled.
But even with his stated misgivings, Edwards has indicated he will likely sign it.
โI would prefer that it contain an exception for rape and an exception for incest,โ Edwards said. โBut it doesnโt change the law thatโs otherwise going to be on the books in that regard either. So I really donโt want to go anywhere near veto language on the bill because vetoing the bill wouldnโt accomplish what Iโm saying I would like to have, and thatโs the exceptions for rape and incest.โ
The trigger law now on the books โ signed by then-Gov. Kathleen Blanco in 2006 โ also makes no exception for victims of rape and incest.
If Edwards signs the bill, it would position him to the right of some leading Republicans on abortion, including Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser, who is expected to run for governor next year.
Nungesser said last month he thinks ถถา๕h should allow abortions until about six weeks into a pregnancy, when fetal cardiac activity is first detected. Attorney General Jeff Landry, another leading potential GOP candidate, takes a more absolutist line: ถถา๕h women who want abortions should โpack your bags and move to California.โ
Only a small fraction of people who get abortions in ถถา๕h cite rape and incest as their reason; at least 376 - less than half of 1 percent โ said that was the reason they got an abortion in the past decade, according to state data. Abortion rights groups say the total is likely higher because many people donโt report, since rape and incest are crimes.
A sticky wicket
In 2019, when a bill to ban abortions after about six weeks came before the House, state Rep. Mary DuBuisson, R-Slidell, voted to add rape and incest exceptions. But when the amendment failed, DuBuisson voted for the bill anyway.
When Sen. Katrina Jacksonโs bill came before the House this year, though, DuBuisson voted against the bill once the exceptions failed. She was the only Republican to vote against it.
DuBuisson said she talked to several GOP colleagues who agreed there should be exceptions, but โpolitically said they could not vote against it because of re-election.โ She said she was told sheโd have a โtarget on my headโ because of her vote, and was urged to change her position. But she decided to vote against the bill, saying it allowed her to โput my head on the pillow at night.โ
โReagan was in favor of exceptions. of exceptions,โ DuBuisson said. โNow itโs like, you have to be a Democrat to think thatโs the way it should be?โ
Then-state Rep. Julie Stokes, a Kenner Republican who identifies as โpro-life,โ tried to get rape and incest exceptions added to that 2019 law. Stokes was also one of 79 House members who ultimately voted for the bill, which was signed by Edwards and would only go into effect if upheld by the courts.
Stokes said there is immense pressure in the Legislature to be an โabsolutistโ on abortion, or risk being tabbed with a โpro-choiceโ label or worse. But with the โguardrailโ of Roe v. Wade disappearing, she said, โwe have to be very thoughtful and careful of what we legislate.โ
โPolitically weโre in difficult times, where everybody on each side feels like they have to be all in 100% on everything,โ Stokes said. โOr theyโre going to get called out as being pro-choice or whatever, just because they canโt fathom making that decision in every instance they canโt possibly imagine.โ
Jackson, a Monroe Democrat who has sponsored a number of the most strongly anti-abortion bills the Legislature has passed in recent years, declined to comment for this story.
Rep. Julie Emerson, R-Carencro, who carried Jacksonโs bill in the House, called the debate over rape and incest exceptions โtough.โ But she defended the absence of exceptions by arguing that โthe child is innocent in this situation.โ
โI know this is a hard decision for a lot of people in here,โ Emerson said. โBut for me, I try to be consistent in things I do here. I do believe that this is consistent with supporting life in this way.โ
ถถา๕h Right to Life, the stateโs most powerful anti-abortion group, sent a note to House members ahead of the vote cautioning them they โreserve the right to score votes on final passage and all amendments in our scorecard,โ which ranks lawmakers on how often they aligned with the organization.
โPlease oppose any amendment that allows for abortions in cases of rape and incest,โ the note said. โRape and incest are terrible crimes, but the child should not pay for the crimes of the father. These exceptions would create difficulty to enforce laws.โ
Public's views are nuanced
The new trigger law is out of step with public opinion on the issue.
Polls have consistently shown ถถา๕hns are more anti-abortion than the rest of the country -- but the less than one in four people say it should be illegal in all cases.
In the most recent ถถา๕h Survey by the LSU Public Policy Research Lab, 22% of respondents said abortion should be illegal in all cases, and 23% said it should be legal in all cases. Among Republicans, 31% said abortion should be illegal in all cases.
A larger share fell somewhere in between. The poll found 23% believe abortion should be legal in most cases, and 27% believe it should be illegal in most cases.
Across America, 59% say abortion should be legal in all or most cases, compared to 39% who say it should be illegal.
Mike Henderson, director of the research lab, said opinions in ถถา๕h seem to have shifted on the issue. From 2016 to 2022, opinions shifted 12 percentage points toward supporting at least some abortion rights.
The overall change is largely driven by shifting opinions among Democrats, who have become more strident in their support of abortion rights, though it is difficult to say why, Henderson said.
Edwards is out of step with most Democrats on abortion, and he is catching some flak from his party for it.
The White House called Jacksonโs bill โextreme,โ noting the lack of exceptions for rape and incest. The ถถา๕h Democratic Party sent a letter to Edwards asking him to veto the bill, , D-New Orleans and 15 House Democrats.
โWe beg you to think of those whose life and health will be seriously jeopardized as physicians are faced with the impossible choice between withholding necessary medical care, or being thrown in jail for 10 years or more because their patient wasn't deemed close enough to dying,โ the House members wrote.โ
If Edwards did veto the bill, the Legislature could potentially muster the votes to override him. The House voted 72-25 to pass the bill, with five Republicans absent. They need 70 votes to override a veto.
The original trigger law was ushered through the Legislature in 2006 by Sen. Ben Nevers, D-Bogalusa, who later served as chief of staff to Edwards.
As then-state Rep. Danny Martiny was presenting the bill in the House, he railed against the idea that lawmakers should add exceptions for survivors of rape and incest.
โI believe the majority of people out here are pro-life. And if youโre pro-life, you should be for preserving life,โ Martiny said at the time. โThere should be no exceptionsโฆWeโre either pro-life or weโre not pro-life.โ
The bill passed on an vote after the House voted to reject amendments adding exceptions for rape and incest.