The Spanish Socialist government has announced its intention to enshrine the right to abortion in the Constitution, aiming to protect it from future political reversals. The proposal, described as a guarantee of “freedom and autonomy for women,” seeks to safeguard one of the country’s most significant social achievements in recent decades. “In a global context of attacks on sexual and reproductive rights, this step is essential to ensure women’s freedom to decide,” declared Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s administration, emphasizing that the issue is not only legal but also moral and social.
However, the chances of success appear slim. Amending the Spanish Constitution requires a three-fifths majority in Parliament, a threshold that the Socialist Party (PSOE) and its left-wing coalition partner Sumar cannot reach with their current minority status. The main opposition parties, the Popular Party (PP) and Vox, have already voiced strong opposition to the initiative. Tensions surrounding the issue have increased in recent months.
In Madrid, the regional government led by the PP recently passed a law requiring health centers to warn women about a supposed “post-abortion trauma.” The measure has been widely criticized by medical experts and international organizations, as the World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed that no such syndrome exists. In other regions, such as Castilla y León, conservative administrations attempted to enforce a rule requiring women to listen to fetal heartbeats and view a 4D ultrasound before proceeding with an abortion.
The initiative was later withdrawn for contradicting national law. Despite opposition from conservative sectors, the national government insists that public hospitals are legally required to provide abortion services and that conscientious objection by medical professionals “must never become an obstacle to women’s healthcare.” In Spain, abortion was partially decriminalized in 1985 and has been legally available up to 14 weeks of pregnancy since 2010. Only one country in the world — France — has gone as far as to include the right to abortion in its Constitution, doing so in 2024, a precedent that now inspires Spain’s ongoing debate.
