Forbes.com Michigan’s 1931 abortion ban cannot start being enforced again if the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade in the coming weeks, a state judge ruled Tuesday, stated Forbes.com on May 17, blocking one of nine state abortion bans from before Roe was decided that could soon take effect if the court overturns the landmark ruling as expected.

LANSING — The leak of a U.S. Supreme Court draft opinion on overturning the constitutionality of abortion instantly created outcries from all sides of the issue, guaranteeing the issue will influence political elections in November.

Forbes.com in a May 9 article stated that gubernatorial races in Kansas, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin will be particularly important to the issue — as Democratic leaders fight to maintain control so they can veto any abortion bans passed by the GOP legislatures — and Florida, Georgia and Ohio are battleground states with gubernatorial elections where Republicans are right now likely to ban or heavily restrict abortion if Roe falls.

The same article said that state legislatures will be pivotal for determining what abortion laws take effect in the absence of Roe; the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee said in a memo its biggest priorities are maintaining control in Colorado, Maine, Nevada, New Mexico and Minnesota, flipping state legislatures in Michigan, New Hampshire and Minnesota, and making inroads in GOP-controlled Arizona, Pennsylvania and Georgia.

In Michigan and Wisconsin, attorneys general are up for re-election who have vowed not to enforce abortion bans put in place before Roe if the ruling is overturned and they go back into effect, and AG races are also taking place in the battleground states of Arizona, Florida, Georgia and Ohio.

It is almost certain that the question of abortion rights will influence Michigan elections. Within the state capital, the Whitmer administration has already begun to take steps to ensure abortion remains legal in Michigan.

An April 7 release from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s office stated she had filed a lawsuit and used her executive power to petition the Michigan Supreme Court to immediately resolve whether Michigan’s Constitution protects the right to abortion. Amidst an ongoing, nationwide assault on abortion, including in some states that have enacted laws banning abortion at conception without exceptions for rape or incest, Whitmer is stepping up to protect Michigan women and the constitutional right to an abortion established 49 years ago in Roe v. Wade.

“No matter what happens to Roe, I am going to fight like hell and use all the tools I have as governor to ensure reproductive freedom is a right for all women in Michigan,” Whitmer said.

On the same day of Whitmer’s press release, Planned Parenthood filed a lawsuit to to block enforcement of Act 328, Ballotpedia states. On May 17, a Michigan Court of Claims judge pre-emptively suspended the enforcement of Act 328, temporarily preventing it from being enforced. On May 20, the Michigan Catholic Conference and Michigan Right to Life filed a complaint, asking the case to be brought to the Michigan Court of Appeals.

Under Act 328 of 1931, any individual who performs an abortion can be guilty of a felony, and any individual who sells a drug or substance for the purpose of procuring an abortion can be found guilty of a misdemeanor.

Ballotpedia goes on to say that As of April, 43 states, including Michigan, prohibit abortion after a specific point in the pregnancy, with some exceptions.

The same Ballotpedia article states that the Michigan Right to Reproductive Freedom Initiative may appear on the ballot in Michigan as an initiated constitutional amendment on Nov. 8.

The ballot initiative would create a state constitutional right to reproductive freedom. The concept of reproductive freedom would be defined as “the right to make and effectuate decisions about all matters relating to pregnancy, including but not limited to prenatal care, childbirth, postpartum care, contraception, sterilization, abortion care, miscarriage management and infertility care.

The ballot initiative would provide that the state can regulate abortion after fetal viability, except that the state could not ban the use of abortion to “protect the life or physical or mental health of the pregnant individual,” as determined by an attending health care professional.

Support for the initiative includes ACLU of Michigan, Michigan Voices and Planned Parenthood Advocates of Michigan. Reproductive Freedom for All is leading the campaign in support of the ballot initiative.

On its website, RFFA argues that the amendment would make sure no one goes to prison for providing safe medical care as well as ensure access to a broad range of reproductive health care, including abortion.

Reproductive Freedom For All is the PAC registered to support this measure. The committee reported $1,873,054.52 in cash and in-kind contributions.

Opposing the initiative are the organizations Michigan Catholic Conference and Right to Life of Michigan.

Citizens to Support MI Women and Children is the PAC opposing this measure. The committee reported $108,187.22 in cash and in-kind contributions.