Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen (R) is warning against a ballot initiative that would give voters the option to enshrine the supposed “right” to abortion in the state Constitution.
A coalition of left-wing groups called Protect Our Rights officially launched its effort this week and must collect roughly 125,000 valid signatures by summer 2024 for the amendment to appear on the ballot next year. The proposed amendment would declare a fundamental “right” to abortion until “fetal viability” — which is generally considered to be between 22 and 24 weeks gestation — or to protect the life or health of the pregnant woman. Under the petition language, a patient’s healthcare practitioner would determine fetal viability.
In response to news of the launch Wednesday, Gov. Pillen said:
This flawed initiative would radically expand abortion in Nebraska, resulting in the deaths of thousands of babies in mothers’ wombs. Its vague and deceptive language could throw open the doors to brutal late-term abortions, putting abortion providers in charge of judging whether, for example, a 39-week-old pre-born baby can be aborted.
“That is totally out of step with the pro-life principles of the overwhelming majority of Nebraskans, whose representatives last session passed a strong and reasonable 12-week abortion ban with common sense exceptions for cases of rape, incest, and life of the mother,” he stated, adding:
I was proud to sign that bill into law and I will continue to fight to save as many babies’ lives as possible from abortion, including by working to defeat this initiative. We will continue to support moms and help them choose life and love. I look forward to standing shoulder to shoulder with pro-life leaders across Nebraska to defend life in our state.
After the fall of Roe, which had invented a federal “right” to abortion in the Constitution, abortion was returned to individual states and their elected representatives, changing the nature of the struggle between the pro-life movement and the abortion industry. Pro-abortion organizations and activists, backed by the affiliates of large left-wing organizations such as Planned Parenthood and the ACLU, have stealthily turned to ballot measures in the hopes of shoring up and even growing the abortion complex in the shift from federal to state power.
Pro-life supporters march in Washington D.C., United States on January 20, 2023 (Photo by Celal Gunes/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
And so far, their plan is working — every single abortion-related ballot measure since the fall of Roe has been successful. During the 2022 special elections, Kansans rejected a ballot measure that would have established that the state Constitution does not include a right to abortion. During the 2022 midterms, voters in California, Michigan, and Vermont codified abortion into their Constitutions. At the same time, voters in Montana rejected a ballot measure that would have given rights to babies born alive in botched abortions. Voters in Kentucky also rejected an amendment similar to the one in Kansas. On November 7, Ohioans also voted to codify the supposed “right” to abortion in their state Constitutions via Issue 1.
Ballot measures are particularly effective as an offensive weapon because they are basically irreversible: they change a state constitution, take precedence over laws passed by state legislatures, and can only be overturned by another ballot measure.
These measures are propped up by national left-wing organizations with deep pockets, out-of-state dark money groups, and billionaires with eugenicist leanings, oftentimes outspending pro-life organizations by double or triple.
Emboldened by their success with amendments, pro-abortion activists are seeking to introduce ballot measures in several other states going into 2024 besides Nebraska, including Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Maryland, Missouri, Nevada, New York, and South Dakota.
In the aftermath of 2022 and Ohio, pro-life organizations say they are reevaluating how they want to tackle the issue moving forward — especially as they gear up to face a tsunami of ballot measures in 2024. These organizations, which cut their teeth for 50 years while working toward the overturn of Roe, are ultimately faced with the challenge of becoming as strategic and well-funded as their opponents while refusing to compromise on the view that human life begins at conception and is worthy of protection until natural death.
“The pro-life movement must adapt to win. We have to throw out the old playbook and dive headfirst into a strategy that can win the hearts and minds of the American people and translate into electoral victory,” Lila Rose, founder and president of Live Action, said in a statement via email following the loss in Ohio. “That strategy starts with fully embracing and educating on the truth. Human life is valuable and must be legally protected. Human life begins at fertilization. Abortion is a murderous act of violence. Embracing the truth with courage is the first step towards the next political victory.”
Katherine Hamilton is a political reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow her on X @thekat_hamilton.