GREENSBORO, N.C. — If the court overturns Roe v. Wade, the decision over abortion legality would fall on each state.
Denise Nation chairs the department of History, Politics and Social Justice at Winston-Salem State University. She said the state does not have any "trigger bans" but there have been attempts to restrict abortion in the past.
"Over the last decade, we've seen where groups have gone to try to get abortion rights here in North Carolina further restricted," Nation said.
Those attempts largely failed, sometimes by court decisions or a veto from Governor Roy Cooper.
Republicans need a supermajority in both chambers of the General Assembly to override a veto. Lots of state seats are up for grabs this November.
Elon University Associate Professor of Political Science and Policy Studies Jason Husser said these races likely won't end with a Republican supermajority. He said it does make General Assembly seats more important.
"It will increase the stakes for state legislative races and governors races across the country," Husser said. "We're going to see more and more political campaigns at the state level focus on abortion as a primary issue or one of the primary issues."
It's not clear if the court's future decisions would impact voter turnout for either party. UNC-Greensboro political science professor Thom Little said the democrats have the most to lose.
"Even if Democrats make gains, given the districts, I don't believe they can take both the house and senate in North Carolina. The Governor will have to be that backstop for Democrats," Little said.
If the court does overturn Roe v. Wade, a change in our state isn't likely within the next couple of years. After that, it's possible.
"I'm not sure where our state will end up on this continuum, but I'm not confident that we would just stick with what we have on the books right now," Nation said.
"Much of what abortion law will look like in North Carolina will depend on day-to-day politics and every four to two-year cycle of who's in power," Husser said.
Husser said this issue proves every race matters. Our state's primary election is in two weeks.