Tuesday marks the August 8 special election in Ohio, during which Ohioans will vote on Issue 1, a measure that would raise the threshold to pass amendments to the state constitution from 50 percent plus one to 60 percent.
The passage of Issue 1 has extra significance, because if Ohioans vote “yes” and Issue 1 passes by a simple majority then a radical abortion amendment, pitched by left-wing groups such as the ACLU of Ohio, will likely have a harder time passing in the November 2023 election.
Attendees pray during a “rosary rally” on Sunday, August 6, 2023, in Norwood, Ohio. A national religious organization, Catholics for Catholics, gathered a lineup of anti-abortion influencers and conspiracy theorists from across the U.S. to speak at the rally to urge a “yes” vote on a ballot question in Ohio, known as Issue 1. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)
Proponents of Issue 1 say the amendment will protect Ohio’s constitution for out-of-state special interest groups. Opponents of Issue 1, including the left-wing groups pushing the abortion measure, view the amendment as an effort to stop their abortion-on-demand agenda in the state. Even so, many coalition members’ own constitutions require supermajorities to amend their bylaws.
“What [Issue 1] would do is put in common sense protections for Ohio’s constitution that would keep outside special interest groups from flying into our state, parachuting into our state with unlimited war chests to circumvent our legislature and buy their way into the Constitution,” Amy Natoce, press secretary for the pro-parent group Protect Women Ohio said during a press call in late July.
State Rep. Brian Stewart (R), who was instrumental in getting the threshold question on the ballot in August, told Breitbart News in April that there is plenty of precedent for going beyond simple majority votes in states that allow outside groups to propose constitutional amendments.
“Florida requires 60 percent for all constitutional amendments. Colorado — a blue state — requires 55 percent for amendments. New Hampshire requires 66 percent for amendments. Arizona requires 60 percent for amendments that would increase taxes,” Stewart said. “So there’s a lot of precedent for moving in this direction, and we think it’s time to finally get it done.”
If Issue 1 passes, the radical abortion amendment, which will be on the ballot in November for Ohioans, will have a harder time passing. The coalition pushing for unfettered abortion access includes groups such as the ACLU of Ohio, Planned Parenthood, and URGE, a group that has long campaigned to end parental involvement laws.
The language of the abortion amendment is extremely broad, making no differentiation between minors and adults, instead opting to use the term “individual.”
The abortion ballot measure states that “every individual has a right to make and carry out one’s own reproductive decisions, including but not limited to decisions on: contraception, fertility treatment, continuing one’s own pregnancy, miscarriage care, and abortion.”
Attendees pray during a “rosary rally” on Sunday, August 6, 2023, in Norwood, Ohio. A national religious organization, Catholics for Catholics, gathered a lineup of anti-abortion influencers and conspiracy theorists from across the U.S. to speak at the rally to urge a “yes” vote on a ballot question in Ohio, known as Issue 1. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)
Under the amendment, the state would also not be allowed to:
…directly or indirectly, burden, penalize, prohibit, interfere with, or discriminate against either an individual’s voluntary exercise of this right or a person or entity that assists an individual exercising this right, unless the state demonstrates that it is using the least restrictive means to advance the individuals health in accordance with widely accepted and evidence-based standards of care.
Critics of the ballot measure have urgently warned that the amendment would decimate parental rights, lead to abortion on demand, and even allow minors to pursue sex-change procedures.
The ACLU of Ohio is responsible for crafting the broad language of the proposed abortion amendment, along with other groups such as Planned Parenthood. Left-wing fact-checkers have quickly asserted that the amendment would not impact parental rights. But when local media questioned the ACLU of Ohio about whether the language of the measure would undo parental consent and notification laws, the organization vaguely indicated that those laws would not stand if the amendment passes.
Pro-abortion activists protest in front of the Supreme Court on June 26, 2022, in Washington, DC. (Nathan Howard/Getty Images)
Issue 1 impacts more than the future of abortion in Ohio, with many other special interest organizations endorsing a “yes” vote on the ballot measure.
“Ohio has very lax standards for passing constitutional amendments, which leaves us incredibly vulnerable. That’s why we have seen a wide range of support for passing Issue 1, not just from the pro-life community and groups like Protect Women Ohio, but also from the business community,” Natoce said. “The Ohio Chamber of Commerce, the Ohio Chapter of NFIB support Issue 1. Groups like the Ohio Farm Bureau also support Issue 1 and Second Amendment groups.”
Saturday and Sunday were the last days to vote early in-person on Issue 1, and turnout was reportedly high across the state, “with lines stretching around buildings in some counties,” the Columbia Dispatch reported.
Polls will be open on August 8 from 6:30 a.m. until 7:30 p.m. for election-day voting. Ohioans can find their polling location on the Secretary of State’s website.
Katherine Hamilton is a political reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow her on Twitter @thekat_hamilton.