Five GOP-led states seek to block Equal Rights Amendment

WASHINGTON, DC – FEBRUARY 12: Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) arrives for a press conference on the House’s upcoming vote to remove the ratification deadline for the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) on February 12, 2020 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

by: Associated Press

Posted: Feb 21, 2020 / 08:49 AM EST

Updated: Feb 21, 2020 / 08:49 AM EST

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Five Republican-led states are seeking to block an effort by three Democratic-led states to see the Equal Rights Amendment adopted into the U.S. Constitution.

Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery said the five GOP-led states rescinded their approvals of the ERA amendment before a congressionally mandated ratification deadline more than 40 years ago.

The Democratic-led state attorneys general argue that the 1982 deadline set by Congress was non-binding. The five states _ Tennessee, Alabama, Louisiana, Nebraska and South Dakota _ filed a motion on Thursday to intervene in a lawsuit filed by Virginia, Nevada and Illinois.