Nevada Republicans face abortion-rights amendment challenge on ballot

An abortion-rights group in Nevada said it has enough signatures to place a measure on the Nevada ballot that would enshrine abortion rights into the Nevada Constitution.

Nevadans for Reproductive Freedom, the organization behind the petition, said it collected 200,000 signatures from voters across every county in the state, which is double the 102,362 signature threshold required to qualify. Under Nevada law, the amendment would need to be voted on in both the 2024 general election and the 2026 midterm elections before becoming law.

If passed, the amendment would give Nevadans “a fundamental right to abortion performed or administered by a qualified health care practitioner until fetal viability, or when needed to protect the life or health of the pregnant patient, without interference from the state or its political subdivisions.”

“I think it shows a lot of bipartisan and a lot of nonpartisan support, and we imagine that a lot of folks, both Republicans and Democrats alike, are going to come out on this issue in 2024,” Lindsey Harmon, president of Nevadans for Reproductive Freedom, told ABC News. “Abortion access is overwhelmingly popular in the state of Nevada, and we feel so privileged to be here to make a safe space for patients who are seeking access to care.”

The group has also pushed for a second measure, which is broader and would grant Nevada residents the authority to make decisions about “all matters relating to pregnancy,” which includes “abortion, birth control, vasectomies, tubal ligation, and infertility care.”

Late last year, a lower court blocked the petition from moving forward, saying it was misleading. Last month, however, the Nevada Supreme Court overturned the lower court’s ruling and argued all of the terms were under the general umbrella of “reproductive rights.” Still, Nevadans for Reproductive Freedoms said it is going to pursue the more narrow measure.

“Obviously for 2024, we are sticking with the language that has been circulated, but it’s important to keep in mind that we need to be proactive and how can we prove that reproductive rights [are] healthcare,” Harmon said.

Republicans in Nevada, who are trying to flip Sen. Jacky Rosen’s (D-NV) seat as well as the state red, will have to grapple with the amendment in November. Veteran Sam Brown is the front-runner for the Republican nominee for Senate ahead of the state’s June 11 primary.

While his campaign website says he is “pro-life,” Brown, like many Republicans lately, has said he believes states should decide abortion policies. Previously, Brown led the Nevada branch of the Faith and Freedom Coalition, which is an anti-abortion organization that has supported the strictest abortion laws in the country. Kristy Wilkinson, Brown’s communications director, told Axios the Freedom and Faith Coalition is focused on human trafficking, not abortion.

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“His efforts were focused on several critical issues facing our state: combating human trafficking, advocating for meaningful criminal justice reform, and supporting the devastated communities recovering from the COVID-19 shutdowns,” Wilkinson said.

Nevada is one of 11 states seeking to enshrine abortion rights into state constitutions. The measures are on the ballot in Colorado, Florida, Maryland, and South Dakota.