Walter Riseman News Today

The bill would ban paramilitary activity intended to create public disturbances or violence.

The bill would ban paramilitary activity intended to create public disturbances or violence.

The bill would ban paramilitary activity intended to create public disturbances or violence.

If the five absent Republicans had been present on Tuesday night, the 73-69 vote to pass the measure could have gone quite differently.

AUGUSTA, Maine — Three Democratic state representatives were in their seats for votes on Tuesday afternoon. When a controversial abortion bill came up at night, they were not.

The House vote was expectedly tight, with the chamber passing it by a 73-69 margin shortly after 9 pm. Tuesday.

Senate Democrats and Republicans agree to hold the debate on Gov. Janet Mills' groundbreaking bill to expand abortion access in the daylight, where the public can easily observe, sometime next week.

Twenty of the Senate's 35 members have endorsed the bill as co-sponsors, but that is no guarantee they will vote for it; some House co-sponsors voted against the bill Thursday night despite a 74-72 victory.

House members debated the bill for more than an hour before tabling it until later today so Democrats could count votes and consider a late amendment.

The 74-72 vote to advance Gov. Janet Mills' bill to expand post-viability abortions came after a four-hour recess to count votes and consider a last-minute compromise.