Each time the United States has a Presidential election, we’re told that it is the most important election ever.
Sometimes it feels like something that politicians just say in order to push voters to the polls.
But Americans will soon face a true life or death decision that could haunt future generations.
Ballot measures become a popular tool in abortion battles
In 2022, the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ruling by the Supreme Court returned control of abortion access back to the states.
While many Pro-Life groups view the overturning of Roe v. Wade as a positive step in the fight against abortion, it may have made matters more complicated.
Abortion advocates in multiple states took the opportunity to push for state-level laws to guarantee abortion access.
The push came in the form of ballot measures.
Several of the groups succeeded and now abortion is a Constitutional right in many states.
Voters in California, Michigan, and Vermont approved measures in 2022 and Ohio followed their lead in 2023.
But not all of the ballot measures were successfully passed.
Kansas and Kentucky rejected the efforts to establish abortion as a right.
Now the trend is spreading going into 2024.
Florida abortion laws under threat after Supreme Court ruling
So far, three states have gained approval through petitions to move forward with ballot measures this November.
Maryland, where over 70 percent of voters support abortion, will decide whether their citizens have a “fundamental right to prevent, continue, or end one’s own pregnancy.”
New York is rolling up several Democrat wishes into one ballot measure.
In their proposed Constitutional amendment, they would put “gender identity, gender expression, [and] pregnancy outcomes” under a list of protected classes.
Florida, which will prohibit abortions after 6 weeks starting in May, is also facing a ballot measure.
Lawmakers in the state have been holding off a ballot measure, but earlier this month the Supreme Court ordered them to go forward with the referendum.
A 60 percent majority will have to be reached in November to change the laws in Florida.
Ballot measures in multiple states still need legislative approval
Abortion activists in another seven states are working to collect enough signatures to bring similar measures to the public this fall.
Montana, Arkansas, Colorado, Nevada, Missouri, South Dakota, and Nebraska could all see referendums if the minimum number of signatures is reached.
With three different measures up for consideration, advocates on both sides of the argument are working in Nebraska.
Two measures seek to either prohibit or limit the availability of abortions in the state.
And a third seeks to make abortion a right to the point of viability.
Three more states are facing uphill legislative battles to bring abortion to the ballot in November.
Pennsylvania, Maine, and Iowa all require legislative approval to bring a Constitutional question to their ballots.
Maine and Iowa both require the approval of consecutive legislatures.
Even if states are successful in passing Constitutional amendments to protect abortion, this battle will continue far into the future.
Until states begin passing laws that define the beginning of life, it will be a perpetual tug-of-war that plagues generations to come.
Patriot Political will keep you up-to-date on any developments to this ongoing story.
