Abortion Bill Passes Texas House, Senate Debate Next

The controversial Texas abortion bill that failed in its last moments in the Senate last month has been passed once again in the state’s House of Representatives.

The bill was filibustered by Democratic Senator Wendy Davis, who spoke for almost 11 hours. But she received three strikes and legislators argued in the final moments of the first special session.

While a vote was held on the bill, it was eventually agreed that the vote came too late. However, Governor Rick Perry (Republican) announced the following day that he would call another special session to vote on both the abortion bill and other pieces of legislation that were not covered during the Legislature’s original session.

Lawmakers spent 10 hours debating the Texas abortion bill in the House before it passed by a good majority. on Wednesday. The vote marked the third time that the House has passed limits on where, when, and how women can obtain an abortion. All but one Republican voted for the bill this time around.

Governor Perry released a statement on Wednesday after the abortion bill passed, saying:

“The tremendous outpouring of support for this legislation has demonstrated how Texas stands for life, and I commend everyone who wore blue, turned out and spoke up in support of life in our state.”

The Senate is expected to debate the bill in the next two days. A vote is expected to take place by Friday. The Texas abortion bill will require doctors to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals, ban the procedure after 20 weeks, and only allow them to take place in a surgical center.

All attempts to amend the bill were rejected by Republicans and hundreds of protesters in the Capital’s rotunda chanted, “Shame on you!” after the bill was passed.

Now that the Texas abortion bill has passed the House, it will likely face contentious debate and protests before it goes to a vote in the Senate.