Arizona Reproductive Rights Advocates Exceed Signature Threshold for Abortion Ballot Measure
PHOENIX — Groups advocating for reproductive rights in Arizona have announced that they have surpassed the required number of signatures to place a constitutional amendment on abortion on the state’s November ballot.
Arizona for Abortion Access, a coalition comprising organizations such as the ACLU of Arizona and Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona, revealed that they have gathered 506,892 petition signatures as of this past weekend. This milestone was achieved with over three months remaining until the July 3 deadline to submit signatures to Arizona’s secretary of state. While some signatures may be invalidated during the verification process, the amendment is on track to be presented to voters this fall.
Cheryl Bruce, the campaign manager for Arizona for Abortion Access, expressed the public's strong support for the initiative, stating, “This is an issue that people are eager to see on the ballot. As our volunteers are out collecting, people are coming up to them and wanting to sign this petition. They want to see access to abortion restored in the state of Arizona.”
The inclusion of the abortion measure on the ballot alongside the presidential candidates, President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, will highlight a key Democratic platform in a critical battleground state. The 2022 Dobbs decision by the Supreme Court, which overturned Roe v. Wade and granted states control over abortion policy, has become a focal point of Democratic campaigns.
Arizona, won by Biden by a narrow margin of 0.3 percentage points in the previous election, is the closest swing state from 2020 that is likely to have an abortion-related ballot measure this fall.
The proposed constitutional amendment by Arizona for Abortion Access aims to establish a "fundamental right" to receive abortion care up to fetal viability, approximately the 24th week of pregnancy. Exceptions would be allowed after that point if a health care professional determines it is necessary to protect the life or physical or mental health of the pregnant individual. Critics of the measure have raised concerns about the potentially broad application of the mental health exception, arguing that it could lead to the termination of viable pregnancies too easily.
Currently, Arizona law permits abortion up to the 15th week of pregnancy, with an exception thereafter only to save the mother's life, and no exceptions for rape or incest.
The ongoing legal battle over an 1864 abortion ban that remains in Arizona's statutes, although not enforced since before Roe v. Wade, adds further complexity to the abortion rights landscape in the state. This uncertainty has spurred a surge in volunteer support for Arizona for Abortion Access, with over 3,000 volunteers already engaged in signature collection efforts.
Among these volunteers are individuals like Toby Urvater, a 62-year-old retiree, who has become a notary specifically for this referendum, and Deborah Nye, 75, who had an illegal abortion in high school before Roe v. Wade and is now advocating to prevent others from facing similar situations.
While Arizona for Abortion Access aims to collect 800,000 signatures, opponents of abortion rights have indicated their readiness to scrutinize each signature. Despite this, Bruce remains confident in their preparation, stating, "All of our circulators are highly trained … and are all being very diligent in the way in which they are collecting signatures to make sure that we are well prepared to withstand any legal challenge the opposition plans to throw our way."