Florida voters narrowly rejected a bill that would enshrine the right to abortion in the state constitution, Decision Desk headquarters announced. projected.
The amendment was declared rejected at 8:15 p.m., more than an hour after voting ended with nearly 90% of votes counted. Amendment fails 57% to 43%, Associated Press (AP) data showed When on the phone. The amendment needed 60% support to pass.
The proposed abortion measures are Amendment No. 4is supported by Floridians Defending Freedom. union Left-wing organizations such as Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Florida.
Abortion amendment would cancel state six-week deadline limit And it would essentially create a permanent right to abortion in the state that could only be reversed by a separate ballot measure or a difficult legal battle. Under this abortion measure, abortion during pregnancy is basically permitted under certain conditions.
Amendment No. 4 The bill would have prohibited states from restricting abortions before the viable period after approximately 24 weeks of pregnancy “as determined by the patient's health care provider.”
It says:
No law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the health of the patient in accordance with the judgment of the patient's health care provider. This amendment does not change Congress' constitutional authority to require parents or guardians to be notified before a minor obtains an abortion.
If this amendment passes, Florida likely abortion destination statesurrounding states have significantly restricted abortions in the first trimester.
The Florida Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) opposed the amendment. I'm saying It “threats women's safety.” AHCA warned that the bill's vague language could overturn at least 20 abortion-related laws, including parental consent, if passed.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (Republican) also spoke Opposed to amending abortion laws, said It is “written in a manner deliberately designed to deceive voters.”
Florida's bill would be the first pro-abortion constitutional amendment to fail since the Supreme Court's decision. Dobbs decision.
Since fall 2019, all pro-abortion ballot measures egg It was successful. Kansan during the 2022 special election. rejected The ballot measure established that the state constitution does not include a right to abortion. In the 2022 midterm elections, voters will California, michiganand vermont state Abortion was codified into the constitution. At the same time, voters in Montana rejected This was a ballot measure that gave rights to babies born alive after failed abortions. Kentucky voters too rejected Amendments similar to those in Kansas. Last November, people in Ohio also I voted Codifying the purported right to abortion into the state constitution through Title I.
No voting policy has achieved 60% support, with only Kansas coming close at 58.97%.
Voting measures are particularly effective as attack vectors because they are essentially irreversible. Ballot measures change the state constitution, override laws passed by the state Legislature, and can only be overturned by another ballot measure or a lengthy legal battle. Supporters of these measures are typically left-wing organizations and well-funded affiliates (such as Planned Parenthood and the ACLU), out-of-state underground finance groups, billionaires with eugenicist leanings, and often pro-life groups. This exceeds expenditures by two or three times. .
Nine states outside of Florida also have abortion on the ballot.
Katherine Hamilton is a political reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow her at @thekat_Hamilton.
