Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds to Appeal Decision Overturning 24-Hour Waiting Period

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds (R)

Last Monday, District Court Judge Mitchell Turner ruled that an Iowa law requiring a 24 hour waiting period for women seeking an abortion was unconstitutional. As many pro-life advocates expected, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds quickly announced that she plans on appealing Judge Turner's decision.

At a news conference last Wednesday at the Iowa Capitol, Gov. Reynolds said, “I absolutely don’t agree with the decision, and that’s what the process is for. Certainly, we’ll be appealing that decision, and we’re pretty confident that we can get the outcome that we’re looking for.”

Judge Truner's decision relied on precedent from the Iowa Supreme Court's 2018 decision regarding a 72 hour waiting period law. That waiting period was decided to be unconstitutional, but the court went even further than that; declaring that women have a fundamental right to have an abortion under the Iowa Constitution.

Five of the seven justices on the Supreme Court have been replaced by pro-life Gov. Reynolds since the 2018 decision. This includes four out of the five justices who were in the majority on that decision.

Legislators have also started the long process of amending the Constitution to guarantee that it cannot be interpreted to secure a right to abortion. If the process continues to be successful, Iowans will have the opportunity to vote on that amendment in 2024.

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