An official informational pamphlet for Arizona voters who will decide in the fall whether to guarantee a constitutional right to an abortion can refer to a fetus as an “unborn human being”, the state’s highest court ruled on Wednesday.
Arizona voters will get to decide in November whether to add the right to an abortion to the state constitution.
The proposed amendment would allow abortions until a fetus could survive outside the womb, typically around 24 weeks, with exceptions to save the pregnant individual’s life or to protect her physical or mental health. It would restrict the state from adopting or enforcing any law that would prohibit access to the procedure.
The justices of the Arizona supreme court, in Wednesday’s decision, sided with Republican lawmakers over proponents of the ballot measure on abortion rights.
But Wednesday’s ruling drew swift criticism from abortion rights advocates who had argued that the phrase “unborn human being” is neither impartial nor objective. They also said they were concerned that Arizonans would be subjected to biased and politically charged words.
“We are deeply disappointed in this ruling, but will not be deterred from doing everything in our power to communicate to voters the truth of the Arizona Abortion Access Act and why it’s critical to vote yes to restore and protect access to abortion care this fall,” the group, Arizona for Abortion Access, said in a statement.
The pamphlet, a voter guide produced by the office of the Arizona secretary of state, gives voters information on candidates and ballot measures to help inform their choices. It was unclear, however, whether any specific language contained in the pamphlet would appear on the ballot.
The Arizona secretary of state’s office said on Monday that it had certified 577,971 signatures – far above the required number that the coalition supporting the ballot measure had to submit in order to put the question before voters.
Democrats have made abortion rights a central message since the US supreme court overturned Roe v Wade in 2022 – and it is a key part of their efforts in this year’s elections. Arizona is a major battleground state in the presidential election, and Democrats are hoping that enthusiasm for the ballot measure will translate to increased turnout among their base.
Earlier this year, the Arizona supreme court ruled to let a near-total abortion ban that dated back to 1864 take effect in the state – a move that unleashed national outrage and ultimately led a handful of Republican state legislators to join Democrats in voting to repeal the 1864 ban. Arizona currently bans abortion past 15 weeks of pregnancy.
Seven other states are also set to vote on abortion-related ballot measures this year, including Nevada, another battleground state. In the two years since Roe’s demise, GOP stronghold states like Ohio and Kansas have all voted to pass ballot measures that preserve abortion rights.
The Associated Press contributed reporting
