Keystone Today

This week, Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf (D) vetoed Senate Bill 3, an anti-choice bill that would limit women's access to abortion procedures.

“This legislation is a disingenuous and bald-faced attempt to create the most extreme anti-choice legislation in the country," Wolf said, according to the Official Pennsylvania Government Website. "This legislation is an attempt to criminalize the decisions that women make about their own health care, and this legislation destroys health care options for victims of the horrors of rape and incest. For these reasons, I am vetoing this bill today.”

The legislation arrived at Wolf's desk after passing in the Pennsylvania House by a 121-70 vote. The legislation would ban abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, except in the rarest of circumstances. Perhaps the most controversial aspect of the bill is the fact that it does not allow exceptions for rape, incest, health considerations or tragic fetal anomalies. It would also place a ban on one of the safest abortion methods available. 

Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney | Wikimedia Commons

Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney (D) voiced his support for the governor's veto. “I fully support the governor’s decision to veto this bill," Kenney said, according to the Official Pennsylvania Government Website. "The state should not be telling women — particularly women who became pregnant by rape or incest — that they don’t have the right to decide what to do with their body. These women are victims, and they should not be victimized again by this law.”

The mayor wasn't alone in his praise of the decision to veto. Women from around the state expressed gratitude as well. 

“Thanks to Gov. Wolf, women like me will maintain both our freedom to believe what the science tells us about our unborn children and the self-determination to make our own decisions about our bodies,” Dr. Erica Goldblatt Hyatt said, according to the Official Pennsylvania Government Website.

This isn't the first time that Wolf has vetoed bills that would restrict access to abortion. His administration has made it a point to promote a pro-choice agenda.

"Since I took office, there have been six anti-abortion bills introduced by members of Pennsylvania’s General Assembly," Wolf tweeted Jan. 25. "I have vetoed the three bills placed on my desk for signature and vowed to veto the rest. I'll veto any new attempts to restrict access to abortion."