The news of the ballot measure came Monday after the Florida Supreme Court upheld the 15-week abortion limit which Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) signed into law in 2022. According to the court, the Plaintiff in the case, Planned Parenthood, “cannot overcome the presumption of constitutionality and is unable to demonstrate beyond a reasonable doubt that the 15-week ban is unconstitutional.”
The Florida Supreme Court also opted to allow the abortion ballot measure to move forward. In other words, Florida voters will get to make a determination in November as to just how far they will go in allowing abortion. This proposed amendment to the state’s constitution would allow abortion far beyond 15 weeks.
The proposed amendment is backed by Floridians Protecting Freedom — a coalition of left-wing groups including Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Florida — and bars the state from restricting abortion before viability (approximately 24 weeks) or “when necessary to protect the patient’s health, as determined by the patient’s healthcare provider.”
Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody had asked the state’s high court to block the amendment from appearing on the ballot in November. One of Moody’s main concerns was the measure’s use of the term “viability,” which she says could have several meanings and confuse voters.
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If Florida voters pass the measure with at least 60 percent support in November, the amendment would undo the six-week limit and basically create a permanent right to abortion in the state that could only be undone with another ballot measure or an uphill legal battle.
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