Push to repeal parental notification for minors seeking abortions tests liberal limits of Illinois’ Democratic-controlled legislature

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — With the backing of the legislature’s Democratic majority, Illinois has been at the forefront of expanding abortion access in recent years, even enshrining a “fundamental right” to the procedure in state statute.

Legislative efforts backed by Gov. J.B. Pritzker to repeal a quarter-century-old Republican-sponsored law requiring parents to be notified when a minor seeks an abortion, however, have not been an easy sell. Even some Democrats question whether such a move goes too far in pitting abortion rights against parental rights.

The issue could be taken up this week when lawmakers return to Springfield for the second half of their fall session. But Democrats, who by and large supported legislation over the past four years to expand and protect access to abortion, are still working to line up votes to do away with the parental notification law.

Supporters are eager to affirm Illinois’ position as a bastion of abortion rights in light of a Texas law enacted earlier this year that essentially bans the procedure after six weeks of pregnancy and as the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to hear a Mississippi case later this year that could undermine the landmark 1973