Lifestyle Health Biden Says He Would Sign a Bill Protecting the Right to Abortion Nationwide — Here's Where Congress Stands Biden's remarks came after Politico released a leaked draft opinion from the Supreme Court that details their decision to overturn Roe v. Wade By Julie Mazziotta Julie Mazziotta Twitter Julie Mazziotta is the Sports Editor at PEOPLE, covering everything from the NFL to tennis to Simone Biles and Tom Brady. She was previously an Associate Editor for the Health vertical for six years, and prior to joining PEOPLE worked at Health Magazine. When not covering professional athletes, Julie spends her time as a (very) amateur athlete, training for marathons, long bike trips and hikes. People Editorial Guidelines Published on May 3, 2022 12:39 PM Share Tweet Pin Email President Joe Biden. Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty President Joe Biden vowed to sign legislation that would make the right to an abortion a federal law, the morning after Politico released a leaked draft opinion from the Supreme Court that details their decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. In a written statement, Biden called on Congress to codify the right to an abortion and "protect a women's right to choose" in light of the leaked opinion, in which Justice Samuel Alito writes that Roe "must be overruled." The draft, which the Supreme Court confirmed is authentic, is not expected to be finalized for weeks and could change during that time. "If the court does overturn Roe, it will fall on our nation's elected officials at all levels of government to protect a woman's right to choose," Biden said. "And it will fall on voters to elect pro-choice officials this November. At the federal level, we will need more pro-choice senators and a pro-choice majority in the House to adopt legislation that codifies Roe, which I will work to pass and sign into law." With Roe vs. Wade in Danger, These True Stories from Women About Their Abortions Are More Powerful Than Ever Biden said he believes "that a woman's right to choose is fundamental, Roe has been the law of the land for almost fifty years and basic fairness and the stability of our law demand that it not be overturned." For more on the leaked SCOTUS opinion to overturn Roe v. Wade, listen below to our daily podcast PEOPLE Every Day. Abortions remain a constitutional right in the United States as of today. But even if the Supreme Court overturns Roe in the coming months, Congress has the ability right now to create and pass legislation that would make the right to an abortion a federal law. Any bill faces an uphill battle, though. The Senate needs 60 votes to pass legislation — more than just a simple majority of 50 because they would also need to override a likely filibuster — and Democrats hold a slim majority of 50 with Vice President Kamala Harris as the tiebreaking vote. Last year, the House passed the Women's Health Protection Act, intended to codify abortion rights, but when the Senate moved to vote on it in March Republicans, along with Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin from West Virginia, blocked it from going to the floor for debate. RELATED VIDEO: 'I Pray for All ... Who Will Suffer': Many Stars Are Outraged at Sweeping Alabama Abortion Ban The other option is for the Senate to eliminate the filibuster, which they could do with just 50 votes, but Manchin and Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, a Democrat from Arizona, have repeatedly opposed doing so. Still, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat from New York, said Tuesday that he intends to have the chamber vote on a bill that would codify abortion rights. "A vote on this legislation is not an abstract exercise," Schumer said on the Senate floor. "This is as urgent and real as it gets. We will vote to protect a woman's right to choose and every American is going to see [on] which side every senator stands."