Voters in Arizona and Montana will have the opportunity to decide in November whether they want to protect the right to an abortion in their state constitutions. The Arizona Supreme Court validated a 200-word summary used by abortion rights advocates to collect signatures for a ballot measure, allowing the issue to remain on the ballot. The Arizona Secretary of State’s office certified that enough signatures had been collected for the issue to be put before voters, with over 577,000 signatures submitted. In Montana, Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen certified a constitutional initiative for the November ballot, with both measures allowing abortions until fetal viability, around 24 weeks.
In Arizona, there are exceptions for post-viability abortions to save the mother’s life or protect her health, while Montana’s measure allows later abortions if needed for the mother’s life or health. Montana’s initiative would enshrine the 1999 state Supreme Court ruling that found the right to privacy includes the right of a patient to receive an abortion. This comes as Republican lawmakers have passed bills to restrict abortion rights, prompting efforts to protect the right through voter-approved initiatives. Abortion measures will be decided by voters in multiple states this fall, with Democrats making abortion rights a central message following the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade.
Since the overturning of Roe v. Wade, seven states have put abortion questions before voters, with abortion supporters winning in each case. Planned Parenthood of Montana president and CEO Martha Fuller highlighted the efforts to maintain abortion rights amid attempts by anti-abortion politicians to restrict them. Recent decisions from the Arizona Supreme Court have addressed issues such as language in voter information pamphlets and the lawsuit by Arizona Right to Life over the petition summary. The court rejected claims that the summary was misleading or failed to mention the impact of the proposed amendment on existing abortion laws.
Arizona for Abortion Access, the group behind the initiative in Arizona, welcomed the court’s ruling as a “huge win” and expressed confidence that Arizona voters will establish a fundamental right to abortion in the state. Pro-life groups like Arizona Right to Life have vowed to continue informing voters about what they see as ambiguous language in the initiative. The battle over abortion rights is expected to intensify as the November elections draw closer, with the outcomes in Arizona and Montana potentially having significant implications for reproductive rights in those states. Voters will ultimately decide whether to enshrine abortion protections in their state constitutions, making this a key issue in the upcoming elections.
