In a landmark decision, a North Dakota state judge has overturned the state’s near-total abortion ban, marking the first time in over a year that abortion may become legal again in the state. On Thursday, Judge Bruce Romanick of Bismarck ruled that the North Dakota Constitution protects a woman’s right to access abortion services before fetal viability, siding with abortion providers who had challenged the ban. The ruling is set to take effect within the next two
Meetra Mehdizadeh, an attorney with the Center for Reproductive Rights, praised the decision. “This is a win for reproductive freedom, and it now makes North Dakota a safer place for pregnant individuals,” Mehdizadeh said in a statement. The New York-based legal organization represented the plaintiffs in the case.
North Dakota’s Attorney General, Drew Wrigley, expressed his discontent with the ruling. In a statement, Wrigley vowed to appeal the decision, asserting that Judge Romanick’s opinion “improperly disregards a law created by the legislative branch” and goes against established precedent set by the state Supreme Court.
The overturned law was signed in April 2023 by Governor Doug Burgum, a Republican, making it a felony for doctors to perform abortions. The legislation included provisions for cases where the mother’s life was at risk or her health was seriously endangered. However, abortion providers argued that these exceptions were vague, leaving doctors uncertain about when an abortion could legally be performed.
The law also allowed exceptions for pregnancies resulting from rape or incest but only within the first six weeks—before many women even realize they are pregnant. This narrow timeframe led to further criticisms from reproductive rights advocates.
The legal battle over abortion in North Dakota began in 2022 when providers initially sued over an even stricter ban that was poised to take effect following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. Judge Romanick had blocked that earlier ban, a decision that was upheld by the state Supreme Court. In response, the North Dakota legislature passed the new law, which has now been struck down.
In his written opinion, Judge Romanick emphasized that the state constitution guarantees the “fundamental right of every North Dakotan to make medical decisions affecting their bodily integrity, health, and autonomy.” He further argued that the state’s interest in protecting “unborn human life, pre-viability, is not enough to override a woman’s fundamental rights.”
North Dakota’s sole abortion clinic relocated to Moorhead, Minnesota, soon after the Supreme Court’s 2022 ruling. This move left the state without an abortion provider, and its fate under the law remained uncertain as legal challenges unfolded.
North Dakota is one of more than 20 Republican-led states that have imposed abortion bans or restrictions following the 2022 Supreme Court ruling. However, several of these laws have been blocked or overturned either in court or through voter-approved ballot measures.
As the legal landscape around abortion continues to evolve, the issue is poised to play a pivotal role in the upcoming 2024 elections. At least nine states are expected to vote on ballot initiatives aimed at enshrining abortion rights, while the broader debate over reproductive rights will likely be a key issue in the presidential race.