Kansas Abortion Amendment: Voters in Kansas turned down a suggested state constitutional amendment on Tuesday that would have said there was no right to an Abortion in the state.
Kansas was the foremost state to vote on abortion rights since the U.S. Supreme Court passed down its ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson’s Women’s Health Organization.
President Joe Biden praised Tuesday’s vote and reached out to Congress to pass a law to restore nationwide abortion rights that were provided by Roe.
“This vote makes clear what we know: the majority of Americans agree that women should have access to abortion and should have the right to make their own health care decisions,” Biden said in a statement.
The leading abortion rights group fighting the amendment,
Kansas For Constitutional Freedom called the victory “huge and decisive.”
Rachel Sweet, campaign manager for the group, said:
“The people of Kansas have spoken; they think that abortion should be safe, legal and accessible in the state of Kansas.”
Advocates of the amendment argued that it was essential to correct what they say was “the Kansas Supreme Court’s overreach in striking down some of the state’s previous abortion restrictions in 2019”.
Rivals argued that the amendment would set state lawmakers up to pursue a full abortion ban.
After the race was called, 23-year-old Jae Moyer said the powerful victory in the red state was incredible.
“It’s never looked like this in Kansas,” Moyer said. “It’s so amazing. I’m so proud of my state right now.”
“Anti-abortion politicians put this amendment on the primary ballot with the goal of low voter turnout,” said Emily Wales of Planned Parenthood Great Plains Votes, “but they discounted Kansans, who said loud and clear they believe and trust patients to make their own medical decisions.”
Access to abortion in Kansas stays limited. The state has merely four clinics where abortions stay unrestricted.
That leaves many Kansans in the western part of the state hundreds of far away from abortion upkeep.
“We cannot be content with the status quo,” the organization said. “The loss of Roe has brought with it an unprecedented and manufactured health care crisis that is not solved by this election.”
Abortion opposers say they are not done.
Kansans For Life, a major political group that opposes abortion rights, said in a news release that the vote is a brief setback and the organization stays committed to persisting in its work in fighting abortion.
