Only hours after the close of a bitterly fought congressional election, the US Supreme Court will on Wednesday hear a pair of politically explosive abortion cases that could signal whether the new Bush court will threaten Roe v Wade, the landmark 1973 abortion ruling.

It will be the first time the new court, which has two conservative justices appointed by President George W. Bush, has confronted the abortion issue. Abortion was on the ballot in three states during Tuesday’s mid-term elections, but voters do not have the final say: state abortion laws must meet the standard for constitutionality set by the Supreme Court.