US: Oklahoma's legislature passes a bill banning nearly all abortions
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61 percent of Americans believe abortion should be allowed in all or most cases, however support for the procedure beyond the first trimester of pregnancy drops dramatically.
On Thursday, the Oklahoma House enacted a bill prohibiting nearly all abortions beginning at fertilisation.
The plan builds on a statute enacted earlier this month in Oklahoma that forbids abortion beyond six weeks of pregnancy, mirroring a Texas law.
"One of the most extreme abortion bans in the country," said Vice President Kamala Harris.
The bill is part of a nationwide effort by Republican-controlled states to curtail abortion rights. It comes after a leaked draught ruling from the United States Supreme Court suggested that justices are considering weakening or overturning the Roe v. Wade decision, which legalised abortion over 50 years ago.
"Is our goal to defend the right to life or isn't it?" Stearman asked her colleagues before the bill passed on a 73-16 vote mostly along party lines.
According to a Pew Research Center poll conducted in March 2022, 61 percent of Americans believe abortion should be allowed in all or most cases, however support for the procedure beyond the first trimester of pregnancy drops dramatically.
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