Oklahoma City, Okla., Apr 27, 2010 / 19:05 pm
Supermajorities in both houses of the Oklahoma legislature have voted to override the governor’s vetoes of two measures restricting abortion. One law requires a woman to undergo an ultrasound and listen to a detailed description of her unborn child before obtaining an abortion, while another would protect physicians from “wrongful birth” lawsuits.
The veto override for the first bill passed 81-14 and the override for the second passed 84-12 in the Oklahoma House of Representatives. The Senate overrode the vetoes in two separate 36-12 votes, The Oklahoman reports.
Each of the bills first passed the state Senate one vote short of the three-quarters majority needed to override a veto.
Oklahoma Gov. Brad Henry, a Democrat, said the ultrasound legislation was flawed because it did not exempt victims of rape and incest, the Associated Press says. He also said the laws would likely be overturned by the courts as unconstitutional.