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Voters in these states added abortion rights…

Constitutional Law Voters in these states added abortion rights to their constitutions Tuesday

By Debra Cassens Weiss

November 9, 2022, 9:56 am CST

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Voters in Michigan, California and Vermont approved state constitutional amendments Tuesday that protect abortion rights.

Voters in Kentucky also voted in favor of abortion rights when they rejected an anti-abortion constitutional amendment.

In August, voters in Kansas also voted to preserve the right to abortion in the state constitution, according to the Center for Reproductive Rights.

The New York Times, the Washington Post, Reuters and the Associated Press are among the publications with coverage of the ballot measures on abortion.

According to the New York Times, the abortion-rights amendment will have an immediate effect in Michigan, where an old state law banning abortion remains on the books. Laws in California and Vermont already protect the right to abortion.

Abortion is also illegal under Kentucky law, and abortion-rights supporters need a court victory to overturn the ban. The state supreme court is scheduled to hear a challenge to the law Nov. 15.

“The fight is not over,” said Amber Duke, the interim executive director of the ACLU of Kentucky, in a Nov. 8 press release. “We will now continue our fight in state court to restore abortion access in the commonwealth.”

According to the Washington Post, Tamarra Wieder, state director for Kentucky Planned Parenthood Alliance Advocates, said the midterm elections have resulted in a unifying message: “Abortion transcends party lines.”

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