Anti-Choice Ballot Initiatives Rejected By Voters

On Election Day, which was this past Tuesday November 4, the citizens of California, Colorado and South Dakota all shot down the anti-choice measures that appeared on their ballots.

In Colorado, voters rejected Amendment 48, which would have given rights to fertilized eggs. If passed, Amendment 48 would have jeopardized the right to abortion, put women at risk for being prosecuted due to miscarriages, and even threatened access to contraception. An amazing 73% of the electorate voted to protect women's health from this dangerous initiative.

In California, voters narrowly decided to shoot down Proposition 4, which would have instated parental notification requirements for minors seeking abortions, and put their health and safety at risk. Californians voted to protect the rights and lives of its teenage girls, and sent a strong message for the third time that the health of pregnant teens is more important than ideology.

And lastly, in South Dakota, voters opposed Measure 11 by a strong 10 point margin. Measure 11 would have banned virtually all abortions in the state, and included so-called exceptions for health of the woman and rape and incest which were actually nothing but smoke and mirrors. Not only would Measure 11 have put South Dakota women at risk for seeking illegal and unsafe abortion procedures, it also would have been a direct challenge to Roe vs. Wade and attempted to undermine abortion rights all across the country. This is the second time South Dakota has voted against a sweeping abortion ban, and they did so by wide margins both times.

The message is clear: voters respect and want to protect women's health, and demand that the government stay out of private medical decisions. A big congratulations to all who worked so tirelessly to defeat these frightening anti-choice initiatives -- the effort paid off big time!