(The Center Square) – It seems increasingly likely that a constitutional amendment on abortion will be on the November ballot for Arizona voters in November.
The campaign said that they have garnered over 500,000 signatures for their petition to get onto the ballot, which has a July 3 deadline. This ballot initiative deadline to turn in signatures to the Arizona Secretary of State’s office is different than the recent April 1 deadline for candidate, as the threshold is much higher.
According to the office, ballot initiatives need a minimum of 383,923 verified signatures to be put up for a vote.
“Since our signature gathering efforts began last fall, we have amassed a grassroots network of well over 3,000 volunteers across Arizona, from Bullhead City to Nogales and hundreds of communities in between,” Cheryl Bruce, the group’s campaign manager, said in a statement on Tuesday.
“Voters are eager to sign this petition and have a direct say in restoring abortion access this November,” Bruce added.
The Center Square reported the proposed amendment would cover abortion access until “fetal viability.”
“The Arizona Abortion Access Act amends the Arizona Constitution to establish a fundamental right to abortion that the State […] may not deny, restrict or interfere with before the point in pregnancy when a health care provider determines that the fetus has a significant likelihood of survival outside the uterus without extraordinary medical measures unless justified by a compelling governmental interest,” the application for the initiative states.
A counter-effort dubbed “It Goes Too Far” launched in January, and the group says that the amendment is opening the door wide open when it comes to the issue.
“Unfortunately, most voters are not told that under the unregulated, unlimited abortion amendment they will lose the required medical doctor, critical and commonsense safety standards for girls and women seeking abortion, and moms and dads will be shut out of their minor daughter’s abortion decision, leaving her to go through the painful and scary process alone,” Cindy Dahlgren, a spokesperson for “It Goes Too Far” told The Center Square in a statement on Tuesday.
Abortion is considered a top issue in the 2024 election after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, effectively bringing the issue back to the states. According to The Center Square Voters’ Voice Poll in 2023, 88% of American voters back “some form of abortion.” However, 51% of those polled backed some sort of restriction as well.
