Legal Abortions in Mexico City

Last year in April, Mexico City's Legislative Assembly legalized abortion for the first trimester of a pregancy. (Mexico City has been governed by the left-leaning Party of the Democratic Revolution since 1997). It was quickly challenged and criticized by the Catholic Church and the right-leaning National Action Party, but today, Mexico's Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the law in Mexico City, with 8 judges supporting the legalization of abortion, to 3 against. You can read more about the story in English here. (According to the linked article from the New York Times, the decision was not yet official, but it is official now).

Right now, the ruling only applies to the Federal District (which encompasses most of Mexico City), but it does open up the possibility for similar laws in other states. It will be interesting to see how this plays out across the country, especially if there is a partisan divide in providing access to legal abortions in Mexico. I'm not particularly surprised by the Court's decision, but I am surprised by the lopsided support in favor of the law by the Supreme Court judges.