It was a rare legislative win for Democrats in a state where Republicans have had control of both the House and Senate since the turn of the 21st century.
I know that every state’s rules about filibusters are different but it looks like South Carolina’s Democratic state senators know how to use the rules there quite effectively. Democrats are very much the minority in the South Carolina state senate, 28 Republicans vs. 18 Democrats.
COLUMBIA, SC — At 1 a.m. Friday, after three days of debate and facing a Democratic filibuster with no end in sight, Senate Republicans gave in.
A bill that would have outlawed virtually all abortions in South Carolina was killed Friday morning after the Senate's GOP majority failed — on a fourth try — to sit down the Democrats who were keeping it from getting a final vote.
SC Democrats kill Senate GOP's abortion ban with days-long filibuster
Their senate usually only works Tuesday — Thursday so scheduling debate on Friday was a rare move and signaled that the Republican majority thought they could defeat the Democratic minority on this via forcing them to sit down and end the filibuster. Several Democrats canceled travel plans in order to stand firm and united.
Sen. Gerald Malloy of Hartsville said the Democrats' strategy was carefully planned and, like a relay team, they had other senators ready to help if the filibuster went into the weekend. All 45 senators were in the Statehouse for the decisive vote around 12:45 a.m. Friday. Republicans had hoped some Democrats would go home.
[Instead,] Five Republicans joined Democrats in the 24-21 vote, which came after Democrats held the Senate floor for an hours-long [actually, “days-long”] filibuster. The measure, now dead for this year, would only have allowed abortions in cases of rape, incest or risk of the mother's life.
The filibuster over abortion came toward the end of a session in which senators have been accused of putting off several pressing issues. Those issues include bills dealing with a $9 billion debacle after two utilities abandoned 10 years of planning and construction of two nuclear reactors.
The South Carolina Senate will return at 11 a.m. Tuesday with just three days left in the session, meaning any legislation not passed is wiped away and must start all over again next January.
South Carolina abortion ban bill dies in late-night vote
A state senate that was paying attention to concrete issues (like that “$9 billion nuclear utility debacle”) instead of playing to their christian fundamentalist base might have decided against introducing this bill (not to even mention that it was carelessly worded and could also have outlawed most contraceptives). Instead, they now have only three days left in this legislative session and, once again, have failed their constituents. They’re all elected for four-year terms that don’t expire until 2020 so they may be counting on voters’ notoriously short memories.