Idaho voters will decide this November whether to reverse one of the nation's harshest abortion bans, after the state's secretary of state certified a ballot measure Monday that would restore reproductive rights across pregnancy stages.
Idahoans United for Women & Families, a volunteer-led group, collected more than 100,000 signatures to qualify the initiative for the ballot, exceeding the required threshold of 70,725.
The proposed law would allow abortion until fetal viability, generally defined as around 21 weeks of pregnancy, and would protect access to contraception and fertility treatments. The measure would function as a statutory law rather than a constitutional amendment, effectively restoring protections that existed before the Supreme Court's 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.
Idaho stands as one of six states with an abortion ban that excludes exceptions for the pregnant person's health. The state's current law allows abortion only to preserve the woman's life or in cases of rape or incest. The restrictions have created a crisis in the medical community, with healthcare providers fleeing the state to avoid severe legal penalties. In 2023, four women sued after suffering pregnancy complications but being unable to obtain abortions.
The state also became the first in 2023 to criminalize assisting minors in obtaining abortion without parental consent, adding another layer to its restrictions.
Opposition is already mobilizing. David Ripley, CEO of Idaho Chooses Life, told the Associated Press the measure would "basically invalidate virtually every pro-life law that the legislature has enacted over the last 30 to 40 years."
Idaho's ballot fight reflects a broader national shift in the post-Roe landscape. Abortion rights advocates have lost four statewide referendums nationwide but prevailed in 14 others. Virginia and Nevada are separately considering constitutional amendments to enshrine abortion rights, while Missouri is allowing voters to decide whether to reinstate a previous ban that was undone through a constitutional amendment last year.
Author James Rodriguez: "The real story here is how fast the political terrain has shifted since 2022, and Idaho is about to become a test case for whether state legislatures' abortion bans can survive when voters get a direct say."
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