State supreme court had ruled that the near-total abortion ban could be enforced, unleashing unprecedented outrage

After weeks of national outcry and intense political warfare, Katie Hobbs on Thursday signed into law a measure to repeal an 1864 near-total abortion ban that was passed before Arizona even became a state.

The signature of the Democratic Arizona governor is the result of a stunning turn in Arizona politics and the white-hot debate over abortion rights post-Roe v Wade. The 1864 ban, which only permits abortions to save a woman’s life, had long threatened to return to force, but in April the Arizona supreme court ruled the ban could be enforced.

The decision unleashed unprecedented outrage in a state that promises to be a major battleground in the November elections – and a handful of Republicans, who hold a one-seat majority in the Arizona state house and senate, ultimately broke with the Arizona GOP and joined Democrats to vote for the repeal.