A conservative Virginia state delegate is testing support for reinstating a ban on abortion that dates back to 1847, in hope that the U.S. Supreme Court eventually will allow states to decide the issue.
Delegate Robert G. Marshall is asking the candidates for governor and lieutenant governor if they would sign or vote for legislation reinstating the ban, noting the announced retirement of Justice Sandra Day O’Connor.
Justice O’Connor played a key role in cases in 1989 and 1992 that narrowly upheld the high court’s landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that established abortion rights.
“The candidates running for statewide office have an obligation to answer the question [on] what would they do if the Supreme Court threw it back to the states,” said Mr. Marshall, Manassas Republican. “This is a live issue now with her resignation. It’s not far-fetched.”
None of the candidates has responded formally to Mr. Marshall, but each gubernatorial candidate weighed in on the issue when contacted by The Washington Times.
“I would adamantly oppose that,” said H. Russell Potts Jr., a Republican state senator from Winchester who is running as an independent. “It would be a trip back into the Dark Ages.”
Mr. Potts, who is pro-choice, said he thinks he is the most moderate of the three gubernatorial candidates on the issue.
Lt. Gov. Timothy M. Kaine, a Democrat, said as governor he would enforce current restrictions on abortion and work to pass an enforceable ban on partial-birth abortion. He also said he would ensure women’s access to health care and legal contraception and promote abstinence and adoption.
“We should reduce abortion in this manner, rather than by criminalizing women and doctors,” Mr. Kaine said in a statement.
Former Attorney General Jerry W. Kilgore, a Republican, is reviewing Mr. Marshall’s request.
“Jerry Kilgore’s position on abortion is clear: He opposes abortion, but recognizes exceptions for rape, incest and to save the life of the mother,” said Kilgore spokesman Tim Murtaugh.
Mr. Marshall said that if the Supreme Court allows states to set abortion laws, he would propose reinstating the statewide ban in place from 1847 to 1969. “That is my hope,” he said.
He has the support of conservative groups, including the Family Foundation of Virginia.
“Virginia is the birthplace of our nation, and it would be fitting if the return to the principles our founders built the nation upon began in the commonwealth,” said Victoria Cobb, the group’s executive director. “The preservation of life most principally.”
Regardless of the makeup of the Supreme Court, Mrs. Cobb said, voters should understand the position of each candidate on abortion and reproductive rights.
She said Virginians are “in general pro-life, and growing more so all the time.”
A June gubernatorial poll conducted by SurveyUSA for WSLS-TV in Roanoke showed that 54 percent of Virginians surveyed were pro-choice, while 41 percent were pro-life.
National polls show that about 63 percent favor keeping Roe v. Wade in place and 30 percent want the ruling overturned. Those numbers have changed little in the decades since the decision.
Bennet Greenberg, director of government relations for Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia, said a new justice is unlikely to lead the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade. He also said polls show that Virginians support safe, legal and rare abortions.
“A clear majority would oppose a ban on abortions in Virginia, and [a ban] would be contrary to the will of the citizens of the state,” he said.
Measures to limit reproductive rights and restrict abortion generally have passed overwhelmingly in the House of Delegates but have been rejected by the Senate Education and Health Committee, of which Mr. Potts is chairman.
Republicans control both chambers of the legislature.
Observers say Mr. Potts’ committee often acts as the shield for moderate senators who do not want to be on the record for or against bills that restrict abortion or birth control.
Mr. Greenberg said the three gubernatorial candidates “reflect the full spectrum” on abortion and reproductive rights.
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