The Nebraska Supreme Court ruled that two dueling constitutional amendments can appear on the state’s fall ballot. One measure, “Protect the Right to Abortion,” would establish a fundamental right to abortion until fetal viability or to protect the life or health of the pregnant patient. The other, “Protect Women and Children,” would ban abortions in the second and third trimesters, with exceptions for medical emergencies and pregnancies resulting from sexual assault or incest. Abortion opponents argued that the pro-abortion rights measure violated a single-subject rule, but the court disagreed. The Nebraska secretary of state will hold hearings on the measures in October, along with four other unrelated ballot initiatives.
The court ruling was criticized by anti-abortion rights advocates, while the ACLU praised the decision, stating that Nebraskans should be able to vote on ending the current ban on abortion and ensuring decisions about pregnancy are made by patients, not politicians. Nebraska is one of 10 states with abortion-related ballot measures this fall, including conservative-leaning states like Montana, South Dakota, and Florida, as well as liberal-leaning states like Colorado and New York. Abortion rights advocates have seen victories in past ballot initiatives, even in conservative states like Ohio, Kentucky, and Kansas. Ohio added the right to abortion care access to its Constitution in 2021, while Kentucky and Kansas voters rejected proposals that would have limited abortion rights in 2022.
Photo credit
www.nbcnews.com