Gov. Roy Cooper says he plans on Saturday to veto Senate Bill 20, the measure that would ban abortion in North Carolina after 12 weeks. And Cooper said Tuesday at an event in Davidson that even though Republican lawmakers hold a supermajority, he just needs one Republican member to defect and vote to sustain his veto.
"All we need is one Republican to go to the leadership and say we don't need to do this. Now, I think that that is something that I hope that the people of Mecklenburg and surrounding counties will talk to their legislators. I hope legislators will listen to this," said Cooper, a Democrat.
He's traveling to four Republican lawmakers' home turf to make his case. The two Mecklenburg Republican lawmakers who could help preserve Cooper’s veto are Tricia Cotham and John Bradford, both of whom Cooper says campaigned on keeping the state's abortion rights unchanged. He's also trying to pressure Rep. Ted Davis and Sen. Michael Lee.
Cotham and Bradford might be long shots to buck their party — and their earlier votes — and block the override of Cooper's veto. Although Cotham has talked on the floor of the N.C House about her own experience having an abortion, she switched from the Democratic to the Republican Party last month and voted for the bill. And Bradford has publicly said he won't side with Cooper.
During the panel, Democratic state Sen. Natasha Marcus said the restrictions Senate Bill 20 places on abortion care will hurt all North Carolinians.
"This bill is going to drive health care providers out of our state. They're going to go to states where they can practice up to their ethical standards. So even if you think you would never choose abortion, no matter what I'm telling you, this is going to impact your life and the lives of women you care about," said Marcus.
A vote to override Cooper's veto could come as early as next week.
