Will abortion rights amendment land on November ballot?

Reporter: Emma Heaton Writer: Emma Heaton
Published: Updated:
abortion
The U.S. Supreme Court. Credit: The Associated Press

The Supreme Court must decide whether to allow abortion rights on your ballot.

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court held a hearing regarding a proposed amendment that could earn a spot on the November ballot.

The proposal is fueled by a petition gathering enough signatures for a proposed amendment to guarantee abortion rights up to viability.

The Supreme Court must consider a proposed amendment, which would put the decision into Florida voters’ hands, regarding whether women should have the right to choose an abortion up to the point of “viability,” (about 24 weeks).

Justices must decide on three things:

  • One: is the amendment 75 words or less?
  • Two: does it only touch on one subject?
  • Three: is the ballot summary clear and not confusing or deceptive to the average person?

State Attorney General Ashley Moody and some opponents are asking the Supreme Court to keep the measure off the ballot, arguing it misleads voters and could be used to expand abortion rights in the future.

The court has until April to decide if the amendment lands a spot on this year’s ballot.

“If it says no, you can’t put it on the ballot, then that means for the people that want to see abortion rights in Florida, they’re going to have to go back to the drawing board,” said Aubrey Jewett, UCF political expert. “They’re going to have to rewrite the amendment to try to fix whatever the Florida supreme court said was wrong, and then go back and spend a bunch more money millions of dollars and try to gather another million signatures for the next election cycle.”

If the court votes yes to put this amendment on the ballot, 60% or more of Florida voters would have to approve it for the bill to end up in the Constitution.

Where does abortion stand now?

Governor DeSantis signed a bill to ban abortions after six weeks. The ban is contingent upon the outcome of a legal challenge against the state’s existing 15-week ban.

Copyright ©2024 Fort Myers Broadcasting. All rights reserved.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without prior written consent.