Ohio Voters Side With Abortion Lobby, Defeat Proposal Backed by Pro-Lifers

Stephen Kokx : Aug 9, 2023
LifeSiteNews.com

After a proposal to raise the threshold to pass a constitutional amendment to 60% failed Tuesday night, attention now turns to the November election when a radical abortion amendment will be on the ballot.

(Ohio) — [LifeSiteNews.com] Ohio voters shot down Issue 1 by a wide margin on Tuesday, August 8, in a special election. The proposal, backed by abortion supporters, had received 57% of the vote with 96% of the precincts counted at 11 p.m. ET. (Screengrab image: via Twitter-X)

Issue 1 would have changed the process to amend the Ohio constitution by raising the threshold from a simple 50% plus one majority vote to a 60% requirement. Thanks to Issue 1's defeat, pro-lifers will have an uphill battle against the proposal, which a USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll shows is supported by 58% of Ohioans.

The abortion lobby, which strongly fought to defeat the measure, reportedly had a massive three-to-one fundraising edge.

"What's right is right, regardless of the outcome of any election," CatholicVote co-founder Josh Mercer told LifeSite via email. "We know it is our duty to keep our heads high and to march on against attacks on human dignity."

Issue 1's defeat comes ahead of a vote on an amendment proposal backed by the ACLU and Planned Parenthood. The ambiguously worded proposal, deceptively titled "The Right to Reproductive Freedom with Protections for Health and Safety," will go before voters in November. It has been universally criticized by pro-lifers for enabling abortion until birth and undermining parental rights.

Abortion in Ohio is currently legal until 22 weeks of pregnancy. In 2019, GOP Gov. Mike DeWine signed a heartbeat law that banned abortions around six weeks. However, a judge blocked that measure indefinitely. The Ohio Supreme Court is expected to hear the case imminently. The Akron Beacon Journal has reported that Ohio currently has nine abortion clinics, down from 23 in 2010.

Turnout for Issue 1 was atypically high. According to the Associated Press, more than 533,000 people early voted by mail or in-person since July. That's nearly double the early voting in the two most recent statewide primary elections for governor and the legislature. Polls opened at 6:30 a.m. today and closed at 7:30 p.m. There were several reports of voting irregularities and strains on volunteers.

"ALL ballot scanners are down & not working at Cuyahoga Falls polling location," ABC affiliate News 5 journalist Mike Holden reported earlier today. "Voters & workers frustrated. Ballots either placed in orange bag & scanned later OR can void ballot & come back later"... Subscribe for free to Breaking Christian News here

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