By Daniel Stefanski |
Arizona’s leading Democrat continues to push for a constitutional amendment to allow abortion in the state.
On Tuesday, Governor Katie Hobbs took to her personal “X” account to announce that she had signed a petition to send an abortion initiative to the 2024 ballot.
Hobbs said, “Today, I joined Arizonans across the political spectrum and added my name to support the ballot measure to enshrine a right to abortion in our state’s constitution. As a domestic violence advocate, as a mother, and as governor, I will always defend Arizonans’ freedoms.”
The governor then shared a link to the group’s (Arizona for Abortion Access) page to garner more awareness for increased signatures across the state.
This wasn’t the first time that Hobbs had weighed in to support the initiative. Back in August, she posted, “As a lifelong advocate for Arizonans’ reproductive freedom, I’m thrilled that we will have the opportunity to make our voices heard next November. Once and for all, we will make clear that the government should not have a say in women’s personal healthcare decisions.”
Arizona for Abortion Access has until July 3, 2024, to gather 383,923 valid signatures to refer this initiative to the November 2024 ballot. If successful, the initiative would amend the state’s constitution to install abortion as a right in Arizona.
Earlier this year, one of Arizona’s top pro-life leaders, Cathi Herrod from the Center for Arizona Policy, came out in fierce opposition to these efforts, alerting her followers that this measure “would tear down virtually all pro-life precautions and make it nearly impossible to regulate abortion.” Herrod also explained how, if passed, the constitutional amendment would likely allow the likelihood of abortion at all stages of life in the womb, stating, “The broad exemption of ‘mental health’ of the mother after viability is widely understood, even in the courts, to mean virtually anything the abortion provider wants it to mean, including stress or anxiety. Even barbaric partial-birth abortion is legal under this exemption.”
Arizona for Abortion Access lists endorsements from the ACLU of Arizona, Affirm Sexual and Reproductive Health, Healthcare Rising Arizona, Arizona List, NARAL Arizona, and Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona, on its website.
Daniel Stefanski is a reporter for AZ Free News. You can send him news tips using this link.
