Hidalgo becomes third Mexican state to allow abortion

FILE PHOTO: Women hold green handkerchiefs during a protest in support of legal and safe abortion in Mexico City, Mexico, February 19, 2020. REUTERS/Edgard Garrido/File Photo

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Lawmakers in Mexico's Hidalgo state on Wednesday voted to lift the penalties for elective abortion, making Hidalgo the third state in the largely Roman Catholic country to let women choose to end their pregnancies.

The initiative passed with 16 votes in favor and one abstention with 28 lawmakers present, Hidalgo's congress said on Twitter.