Attorney General Ashley Moody says she will ask the state Supreme Court to block a proposed abortion rights amendment from appearing on the 2024 ballot.
Moody released an op-ed for Florida's Voice where she argued that the measure's ballot summary would mislead voters. If passed by 60% of voters, the amendment would prohibit the Legislature from banning abortion prior to "before viability or when necessary to protect the patient's health."
Moody, who has already asked the high court to uphold the state's current ban on abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, says language drawn by the amendment's proponents, Floridians Protecting Freedom, is "one of the worst I have seen." She says voters would be confused by the term "viability" and that it could be viewed as allowing abortion anywhere from 12 weeks to 25 weeks.
"While I personally would not vote for this initiative no matter what definition of 'viability' it was using, I know that to some voters, it is material to their vote — whether you are talking about an abortion in the first trimester or at the end of the second trimester," Moody wrote. "Floridians are entitled to know clearly and concisely what they are voting for or against."
So far, state election officials have verified that more than 400,000 voters have signed petitions to get the proposed abortion amendment on the 2024 ballot. Organizers will need more than 891,000 signatures by the February deadline in order to qualify
But another big hurdle is getting the state Supreme Court to approve the amendment. The court reviews citizen initiatives to see if they stick to a single subject and to make sure the ballot summary given to voters is not misleading.
The Attorney General is responsible for asking the court to review the amendment once organizers collect 25% of the needed signatures. The Attorney General is under no legal obligation to take a position, but often does. Moody has already asked the court to block an amendment that would permit the use of recreational marijuana. That citizen initiative is scheduled to go before the court on Nov. 8.
Florida legislators earlier this year reduced the state's ban on abortion from 15 weeks to six weeks. But that law will not take effect unless the state Supreme Court upholds the current 15-week law. Moody has asked Justices to undo a 1989 ruling that struck down abortion restrictions because the court found they violated the privacy clause that voters put in the state constitution.
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