New York Governor Kathy Hochul reacted to the Politico report that the U.S. Supreme Court has voted to overturn the landmark abortion rights decision Roe v. Wade, saying New York will help women from states where the procedure is outlawed.
Hochul, saying she is “horrified” by the leaked draft opinion, said “for the sake of women across the country, this should not be the Supreme Court's final opinion when it comes to abortion rights.”
Hochul, who became a grandmother over the weekend, said she refuses to let her new granddaughter “have to fight for… rights that should be guaranteed.”
In 2019, New York codified into state law the rights granted in Roe v. Wade, so abortion rights in the state would be unaffected by the draft opinion, were it to be issued as a final decision.
Hochul said women from other states that have so called trigger laws, which would outlaw abortion if the court over turns Roe, will be welcomed “with open arms” in New York, where they can receive access to care.
She vowed that “New York will always be a place where abortion rights are protected and where abortion is safe and accessible.”
Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, the first woman to hold that post, said in a statement that she is “extremely troubled” by the preliminary opinion.
Stewart-Cousins said New York will remain a “destination state for any and all seeking abortion care.” She urged Congress to act quickly to codify the rights in Roe into federal law.