State leaders fight against abortion rights in Florida and across the country

Florida is among 10 states to pass abortion initiatives in Tuesday’s election, an unprecedented development since the end of Roe v. Wade.

Voting is happening in battleground states like Arizona and Nevada, blue states like New York and red states including Nebraska and South Dakota. Abortion is also on the ballot in Colorado, Maryland, Missouri and Montana.

Most initiatives, including Florida’s, would amend the state constitution to allow abortions until fetal viability, generally considered around 24 weeks, or later in some cases to save the mother’s life.

But Florida Amendment 4 stands out because of the challenges it faces, said Chris Melody Fields Figueredo. Fields Figueredo – Executive Director Center for Election Initiative Strategya progressive group voting nationally.

None of the other states require a supermajority vote to pass, but Florida requires 60% support, Fields Figueredo said.

Polling shows a majority of Floridians support Amendment 4. But the question of whether the measure can pass the 60% threshold won’t be answered until the votes are counted.

Fields Figueredo called the governor. Ron DeSantis opposition to the Fourth Amendment is “authoritarian” as DeSantis uses government resources to campaign against it.

“We have seen attempts by the state government to try to stop these reproductive freedom voting measures, but Florida really takes this to a whole other level,” Fields Figueredo said.

Election police knocked on the doors of a small number of people who signed a petition to be on the ballot in an attempt to investigate claims of voter fraud, according to media reports.

In the latest episode of government intervention, the DeSantis administration sent cease and desist letters to television stations a month before the election, threatens criminal prosecution for running pro-abortion ads. A judge later threw out the lawsuit. extension of temporary restraining order after Election Day to prevent new threats from the state.

But the views of state leaders opposing abortion rights initiatives are not unique to Florida, according to Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law, which has been tracking such efforts this election cycle.

For example, the Arizona Supreme Court allowed the Republican-controlled State Legislature to send letters with a link to the fruits as “unborn human beings”.

Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen tried to remove abortion rights from the ballot because he argued the initiative was legally insufficient. Montana Secretary of State Christy Jacobsen Also sought to change election rules disqualify petition signatures from inactive registered voters. However, the Montana Supreme Court overturned the decision of both state leaders.

Knudsen also tried to add a disclaimer to the voting language. But again, the state’s highest court ruled against him.

In Florida, Amendment 4 would include “financial impact report» wrote DeSantis Administration and Heritage Foundation Representative. The political committee Floridians Defending Freedom, which supported Amendment 4, lost a legal battle to remove the warning from the ballot.

Missouri lawmakers and abortion advocates have no success tried to seize the initiative excluded from voting.

Abortion advocates also filed a lawsuit challenge the validity of petition signatures in South Dakota.

Anti-abortion activists in Orange County, Florida filed a lawsuit last month challenge Tuesday’s election results if Amendment 4 passes.

As in Florida, Nebraska voters are deciding whether to protect abortion until the fetus is viable. But there is a twist. In the same election, Nebraska voters will decide whether to ban second- and third-trimester abortions after lawmakers added a second competing initiative to the ballot.

“It’s already confuse votersFields told Figueredo about the tactic.

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