Left-wing activists in Arizona say they have collected enough signatures to move forward with a ballot measure that would add a right to abortion to the state Constitution.
Arizona for Abortion Access — a coalition of groups including ACLU of Arizona, Affirm Sexual and Reproductive Health, Arizona List, Healthcare Rising Arizona, NARAL Arizona, and Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona — said it has amassed more than 500,00 signatures, well past the 383,923 required for the proposed amendment to qualify for the ballot in November, CBS News reported.
Dawn Penich, communications manager for the coalition, said the group plans to turn signatures in closer to the July deadline, and said they are braced for potential legal challenges around the language of the measure.
The current abortion law in Arizona limits the act after 15 weeks of pregnancy with limited exceptions. The proposed constitutional amendment would “provide a fundamental right to an abortion and restrict the state from adopting or enforcing any law that would prohibit access to the procedure,” according to the report.
“The Arizona Supreme Court is also reviewing whether or not a centuries-old ban law banning nearly all abortions, with exceptions for the life and health of the mother, should go into effect,” the report states.
Tuesday’s announcement about signatures comes after the Florida Supreme Court issued a decision allowing an abortion ballot measure to move forward in the state.
RELATED: Florida Supreme Court Upholds 15-Week Abortion Limit, But Voters Will Decide in November
Arizona is one of nearly a dozen states where pro-abortion activists are working to codify the right to kill the unborn.
“We wanted to make sure that what we do restores that decision making power to the people who actually are impacted and who actually understand what’s going on, which is the patient, their own provider, and you know, in consultation with their family,” Penich said.
Leading pro-life group Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America previously said the measure would “create an Arizona unrecognizable to those of us who live here.”
“This proposal put forth in Arizona by the ACLU, Planned Parenthood and other far left special interest groups aims to create an Arizona unrecognizable to those of us who live here. This proposal would impose painful late-term abortions up to birth,” Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America’s Arizona State Director Maria Birnbaum said in a statement.
“Arizonans believe in protecting the unborn and serving their mothers and current law protects babies starting at 15 weeks, which is the point when science proves they can feel pain,” Birnbaum continued:
The ACLU and the abortion lobby’s extreme and barbaric vision for Arizona aligns with their own radical agenda to eliminate parental rights and eliminate any protection for the unborn, not what Arizonans believe. This proposal is repugnant to the values of our state.
If the abortion measure makes it on the November ballot, it would need a simple majority to pass.
Katherine Hamilton is a political reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow her on X @thekat_hamilton.
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