San Marino voters overwhelmingly back legal abortion

By NICOLE WINFIELD and FRANCESCO FEDELI
Associated Press

SAN MARINO (AP) — Residents in the tiny republic of San Marino have voted overwhelmingly to legalize abortion, rejecting a 150-year-old law that had criminalized it. With Sunday’s vote, San Marino becomes the latest majority Catholic state to approve the procedure under certain circumstances. With all 37 polling stations counted, some 77% of voters approved making abortion legal in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy. According to official returns broadcast on San Marino TV, it will also be legal beyond that point if the woman’s life is in danger or if her physical or psychological health is at risk because of fetal anomalies or malformations. San Marino is a microstate of 33,000 people surrounded by Italy.