(CP) – Just days after Gov. Charlie Baker vetoed a bill that would expand abortion access in Massachusetts, the state’s Democrat-led House of Representatives has voted to override the veto.
Last week, Baker, a Republican who supports abortion, elected to veto abortion legislation known as the ROE Act. The bill, which was originally included as part of the state’s budget for fiscal year 2021, would codify the 1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion nationwide into law and loosen abortion restrictions in the state.
“I strongly support a woman’s right to access reproductive health care, and many provisions of this bill,” Baker wrote in a letter to state lawmakers explaining his decision. “However I cannot support the sections of this proposal that expand the availability of late-term abortions and permit minors age 16 and 17 to get an abortion without the consent of the parent or guardian.”
The House of Representatives voted 107-46 Monday to override Baker’s veto of the bill, just barely exceeding the two-thirds majority required to overcome a gubernatorial veto. The Massachusetts Senate, where Democrats outnumber Republicans 36 to 4, is expected to follow suit, meaning that the ROE Act could very well become law in spite of Baker’s veto. READ MORE
