After 12 hours of discussion in the senate, the law was approved with a much wider margin than anticipated: 38 votes in favour, 29 against and one abstention. The result delighted campaigners, some of whom had been camping outside Argentina’s national congress for two days. As late as the day of the debate, the senators who had declared their positions were evenly split for and against, with four undecided.
Abortion has long been the topic of a public debate between feminists, who have demanded its decriminalisation and legalisation for decades, and conservatives, who refuse to accept it as a right under any circumstances. The bill’s passing has resolved this debate in favour of the many thousands of women who have campaigned tirelessly for years for the legal right to control their own bodies.