在...之后赢得了对州议会的完全控制两周前，弗吉尼亚州的民主党人正在抓紧时间行使他们的权力。周一，该党提出了四项法案，包括创建宪法修正案的立法，该修正案将在该州编纂堕胎权。
“弗吉尼亚选民在11月7日传达了一个信息，他们希望弗吉尼亚仍然是一个开放和热情的州，尊重所有居民的个人自由、隐私和经济机会，”弗吉尼亚参议院多数党领袖斯科特·苏罗维尔(Scott Surovell)说。
这些法案还包括在2026年1月1日之前将最低工资提高到每小时15美元的提议，禁止攻击性枪支，并制定一项宪法修正案，废除重罪犯选民资格，并将权利的自动恢复编入法律。
提议的宪法修正案不需要州长签署。对于一项创建宪法修正案的决议，它必须在至少两年的时间里在两院的两届会议上获得通过，然后才能进行公众投票。
在堕胎成为选举中的首要问题之一后，推动将堕胎权纳入州宪法，随着两党的激烈竞选它应该什么时候可用。
共和党候选人支持格伦·杨金州长在这个问题上的立场-对怀孕15周后禁止堕胎的程序进行“限制”，但强奸、乱伦或拯救母亲生命的情况除外-民主党人也在这个问题上施加压力，投放多个广告并打破筹款记录，因为他们认为如果他们赢得立法机构，共和党可能会寻求重大限制。
自从最高法院去年否决了全国性的堕胎权以来，弗吉尼亚州是目前最南部没有广泛禁止或限制堕胎的州。目前，在弗吉尼亚州，怀孕26周后堕胎是被禁止的。
在这张2022年6月28日的资料照片中，支持堕胎权利的示威者在弗吉尼亚州阿灵顿的阿灵顿地方法院外抗议。
布莱恩·奥林·多兹尔/美联社，文件
11月7日，民主党在国会两院险胜之后，打击了杨金的计划州长在记者招待会上说，他仍然相信两党有机会在堕胎问题上走到一起。
“我想我的愿望之一是找到一个地方，就一个最困难的话题聚在一起，”他两周前说。“我相信有一个地方我们可以走到一起...共同点。”
但民主党人周一的努力表明，该党正在效仿包括堪萨斯州、肯塔基州和俄亥俄州在内的其他州的类似努力，通过对修正案和投票措施进行投票，让公众直接支持堕胎权。
“在整个竞选周期中，我们告诉弗吉尼亚人，民主党占多数意味着堕胎权将在联邦受到保护，”众议院多数党领袖Charniele Herring在新闻发布会上说。
弗吉尼亚州共和党人迅速批评堕胎立法，指责民主党人改变了他们在这个问题上的立场。
扬金的政治行动委员会“弗吉尼亚精神”在一份声明中说:“民主党人正在迅速背弃他们在竞选期间做出的核心承诺，即维持弗吉尼亚州现行的堕胎法。”。
“我们甚至不能假装对弗吉尼亚民主党对你们撒谎感到震惊，”弗吉尼亚州共和党通讯主任沙恩·哈里斯附和道。
Virginia Democrats propose amendment to guarantee abortion access after winning General Assembly
Afterwinning full control of the state's General Assemblytwo weeks ago, Virginia Democrats are wasting no time exercising their power. On Monday, the party introduced four bills including legislation to create a constitutional amendment that would codify abortion access in the state.
"Virginia voters sent a message on Nov. 7 that they want Virginia to remain an open and welcoming state that honors individual freedom, privacy and economic opportunity for all of its residents," said Scott Surovell, the majority leader for the Virginia Senate.
The bills also include proposals to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour by Jan. 1, 2026, ban assault-style firearms and create a constitutional amendment that will repeal felon voter disqualification and codify an automatic restoration of rights.
Proposed constitutional amendments do not require a governor's signature. For a resolution to create a constitution amendment, it has to pass both legislative chambers in two sessions over at least two years before going to a vote of the public.
The push to enshrine abortion access in the state constitution comes after abortion became one of the top issues in the election,with both parties campaigning heavilyon when it should be available.
Republican candidates backed Gov. Glenn Youngkin'sstance on the issue-- a "limit" on the procedure banning it after 15 weeks of pregnancy with exceptions for rape, incest or to save the life of the mother -- and Democrats leaned in on the issue, too, running multiple ads and breaking fundraising records as they argued the GOP could pursue major restrictions if they won the Legislature.
Virginia is currently the southern-most state that hasn't widely banned or restricted abortion since the Supreme Court struck down a nationwide right to abortion last year. Right now, abortion is banned in Virginia after 26 weeks.
After Democrats narrowly won both chambers of the General Assembly on Nov. 7,delivering a blow to Youngkin's agenda, the governor said at a presser that he still believed there was a place for both parties to come together on the issue of abortion.
"I think one of my aspirations was to find a place to come together on one of the most difficult topics," he said two weeks ago. "I do believe there is a place we can come together ... common ground."
But Monday's push by Democrats shows the party is following in the footsteps of similar efforts in other states, including Kansas, Kentucky and Ohio, to have the public directly support abortion rights by voting on amendments and ballot measures.
"Throughout the campaign cycle we told Virginians that a Democratic Majority meant that abortion access would be protected in the Commonwealth," Charniele Herring, the majority leader for the House of Delegates, said in a news release.
Virginia Republicans were quick to criticize the abortion legislation, accusing the Democrats of changing their stance on the issue.
"Democrats are rapidly reneging on a core commitment they made during the campaign to maintain the current abortion law in Virginia," Youngkin's PAC, Spirit of Virginia, said in a statement.
"We can't even pretend to be shocked that the VA Dems lied to you," echoed Shane Harris, the communications director for the Republican Party of Virginia.
