Bismarck, North Dakota - The Supreme Court of North Dakota reversed a lower court's ruling that the state's abortion ban was unconstitutional, effectively making it illegal to get most abortions.

A lower court's ruling that a 2023 law banning nearly all abortions in the state was unconstitutional has been reversed by the state's Supreme Court, the Associated Press reported.

While the court voted 3-2 in favor of the lower court's ruling, North Dakota's Constitution requires a 4-1 majority for the Supreme Court to declare a state's law is unlawful and thus null and void.

As a result, it will now become a felony for doctors to perform abortions unless the procedure would save the pregnant person's life or prevent a serious health complication.

Victims of rape and incest will also be permitted to have an abortion, but only during the first six weeks of pregnancy.

The battle for abortion rights in North Dakota has been waged for years, after the state's last clinic moved to Minnesota when the US Supreme Court overturned Roe vs. Wade in 2022.

North Dakota's legislature immediately moved to introduce a strict abortion ban, but it was blocked by the state's Supreme Court. The current legislation is a response to this ban and is slightly less strict.

The Center for Reproductive Rights described the near-outright ban as "devastating" and expressed concerns over the vagueness of the bill's language, which "doesn't clearly explain how sick a patient has to be to qualify for abortion care."

"This setback is nothing short of heartbreaking," CRR said in a statement. "But the fight is far from over... We are NOT backing down."