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Ohio Will Vote on Abortion Rights

Backers of a proposal to establish a right to abortion in the Ohio Constitution submitted enough valid signatures to put the question on the November ballot.

The Republican-controlled Ohio legislature has tried to head off a proposed abortion-rights amendment with a measure, now before voters in a special election, that would make constitutional amendments harder to pass. Maddie McGarvey for The New York Times

In a pivotal showdown that will shape the future of abortion rights in Ohio, voters are set to decide in November whether to amend their state Constitution, enshrining the right to abortion. The proponents of this measure have successfully gathered over 495,000 valid signatures from voters, securing its spot on the ballot.

However, this pro-abortion effort faces formidable opposition. Republicans in the state legislature seek to erect barriers and raise the threshold for amending the constitution to a formidable 60 percent majority, rather than a simple majority. To achieve this, they have placed their own ballot question for consideration in a special election on August 8th, with early voting already underway.

Lauren Blauvelt and Lauren Beene of Ohioans United for Reproductive Rights, the coalition behind the pro-abortion measure, expressed their elation at the petition drive’s completion. They contend that every individual deserves autonomy over their reproductive health care decisions, shielding them from undue government interference. Their mission is to ensure that draconian policies imposed by extremists will never again jeopardize Ohioans’ reproductive rights, including abortion, miscarriage care, and pregnancy-related choices.

Conversely, anti-abortion groups vehemently denounce the proposed amendment as “extreme.” They argue that it would permit abortion until birth and even allow minors to undergo gender-transition surgery without parental consent, despite the amendment’s provisions stating otherwise. Urging voters to support their cause, they advocate for the amendment’s heightened difficulty in passing, emphasizing its perceived grave dangers and well-funded out-of-state interests seeking its success.

The fight for abortion rights has increasingly shifted to state ballot measures following the Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade, a landmark ruling that established the national right to abortion for five decades. Advocates for abortion rights find encouragement in public opinion polls, which indicate that most Americans support the legality of abortion in some instances. The recent poll in Ohio showed 58 percent of likely voters backing the abortion amendment.

Ohio, in particular, has become a test case for the nation. The state’s Republican-led legislature previously passed a law banning abortion after approximately six weeks of pregnancy, except in cases where the mother’s life is at risk or “major impairment” of bodily functions is present, but not for cases of rape or incest. However, this law has been put on hold by a county court judge, keeping abortion legal in Ohio until 22 weeks.

The forthcoming ballot measure seeks to amend the Ohio Constitution to establish a right to abortion similar to the one protected by Roe v. Wade. It would permit abortion until the fetus is viable outside the womb, typically around 23 or 24 weeks. Prior to viability, restrictions on abortion would be allowed, but they must adhere to evidence-based standards of care and use the least restrictive means to safeguard individual health.

The special election on August 8th poses a critical juncture, as it will determine whether the threshold for amending the constitution is raised to 60 percent. Additionally, future amendment proponents would need to collect signatures from at least 5 percent of voters in all 88 counties, instead of just half as required under the current law. The 10-day “curing” period, allowing proponents to gather additional signatures, would also be eliminated.

Though Republicans have argued that August elections are costly and suffer from low voter turnout, the special election was approved solely for the purpose of considering the constitutional amendment to complicate the process of proposing and passing other amendments. While the language on the special-election ballot avoids explicit mention of “abortion,” it remains evident that the stakes are high for supporters of abortion rights seeking to rally voters during the hot summer days.

The pro-abortion camp submitted a substantial total of around 710,000 signatures from all 88 counties. To qualify for the November ballot, they needed at least 413,466 valid signatures, a threshold they successfully surpassed. The coming months will determine whether Ohio will take a decisive step towards safeguarding reproductive rights or whether the pro-abortion efforts will face significant obstacles imposed by their opponents.

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