{"id":2020464,"date":"2023-09-02T17:49:01","date_gmt":"2023-09-02T21:49:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/proposed-constitutional-change-to-expand-abortion-access-in-florida-gains-momentum\/"},"modified":"2023-09-02T17:52:18","modified_gmt":"2023-09-02T21:52:18","slug":"proposed-constitutional-change-to-expand-abortion-access-in-florida-gains-momentum","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/proposed-constitutional-change-to-expand-abortion-access-in-florida-gains-momentum\/","title":{"rendered":"Florida&#8217;s push to expand abortion access gains traction with proposed constitutional change."},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">24<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fproposed-constitutional-change-to-expand-abortion-access-in-florida-gains-momentum%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2020464&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div data-post-content=\"true\" class=\"post_content\" id=\"post_content\">\n<p>An effort to\u2063 change the\u2064 Florida state constitution to enshrine access to abortion has \u200draised nearly $5 million in donations and amassed 147,524 petition signatures in just four months.<\/p>\n<p>That alarms grassroots \u2063conservatives in the Sunshine State, who are still celebrating the passage of the Heartbeat Protection Act.<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"> <\/span>The new legislation\u200c prohibits most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy.<\/p>\n<p>Floridians Protecting Freedom Inc. seeks to reverse that. And pro-life activists worry that\u200c the group could be successful, especially \u2063because the strategy seems to target conservatives,\u2064 who might misunderstand the intent of the petition.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h2>Battle Over Abortion in Florida<\/h2>\n<p>Andrew Shirvell is the founder \u2063of Florida Voice for\u2062 the Unborn, a statewide, grassroots, pro-life lobbying organization. He fears that some conservatives might be too complacent after perceived \u201cwins\u201d \u200bto limit abortion.<\/p>\n<p>In 2022, the Republican-led legislature \u2063delivered a 15-week ban to the desk of Gov. Ron\u200d DeSantis, who signed it into law. In 2023, the Republican governor\u2014currently running for president\u2014signed legislation limiting most abortions beyond\u200b six weeks of pregnancy.<\/p>\n<p>Those were celebrated as big victories by many\u2062 conservatives,\u200d even though the new six-week ban isn&#8217;t in effect yet.<\/p>\n<p>In September, the Florida Supreme Court \u2062will hear arguments in a case challenging the\u200b 15-week abortion ban. Due to\u2063 court rules, the six-week ban will not go into effect until 30 days following the\u200b court\u2019s ruling on the 15-week ban.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, the well-funded effort to block legislation restricting abortion in the\u2062 state is gaining momentum.<\/p>\n<p>Floridians Protecting Freedom \u2062has raised nearly $5 \u2064million since late April with over 1,500 individual \u200ccampaign\u2064 contributions, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/dos.elections.myflorida.com\/cgi-bin\/contrib.exe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">data<\/a> from the Florida Division of Elections. Hundreds of \u2064contributions to\u2064 the pro-abortion initiative are from private citizens donating less than $100.<\/p>\n<p>By\u200b contrast, the Florida recreational cannabis initiative proposed by Smart &#038; Safe Florida has\u200b just \u2062one company\u2014Trulieve, a medical marijuana dispensary chain\u2014as its primary financial\u200b backer. The\u2064 effort raised\u2064 almost $40\u2062 million by August.<\/p>\n<p>The possibility of having pro-abortion and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/proposed-constitutional-change-to-expand-abortion-access-in-florida-gains-momentum\/\" title=\"Florida's push to expand abortion access gains traction with proposed constitutional change.\">pro-recreational cannabis initiatives<\/a> on the 2024 ballot could have wide-reaching implications for the Republican Party,\u2063 Mr. Shirvell told The Epoch Times.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is dangerous because it will motivate the pro-abortion side to come\u2064 out,&#8221; Mr. Shirvell said.<\/p>\n<p>And even if the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/anti-abortion-advocates-sue-ohio-secretary-of-state-over-abortion-amendment\/\" title=\"Ohio secretary of state faces lawsuit by anti-abortion advocates over abortion amendment.\">proposed constitutional\u2062 amendment<\/a> doesn&#8217;t pass, having \u200bits supporters show up en \u200bmasse \u200dto vote \u2062for it could hurt all Republican candidates, he said.<\/p>\n<p>Over \u2063the past year, the number of registered Republicans in Florida has exceeded Democrats for the first time in the state&#8217;s history.\u200c As of Sept. 1, state records showed there were more than 5.2 million Republicans, almost 4.7 million Democrats, and\u200d almost 3.9 million voters \u2062with no party affiliation.<\/p>\n<p>Mr. Shirvell frets that Democratic and Independent voters who would typically\u2064 sit \u2064out other elections could \u200cbe driven to the polls by these two voter initiatives\u200c sitting side-by-side on the ballot. He also sees a lack of unity on the political Right and worries the proposed amendment could\u200d win over voters who are \u200dstill undecided on abortion rules.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;If the Republican Party doesn\u2019t answer that with either ads or mobilizing their base to\u2062 vote against \u200bit,\u2062 they\u2019re going to be hurt down-ballot,&#8221; Mr. Shirvell said. &#8220;They need to mobilize.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Christian Ziegler, the chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n<p>Mr. Shirvell is trying to raise conservative awareness by promoting a \u201cDecline to Sign\u201d campaign. With it, he hopes to inform\u2062 voters of the implications of a pro-abortion constitutional amendment, \u2063that it&#8217;s meant to \u201cexpand abortion\u201d in Florida.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think here in Florida, what we \u200cneed to \u200ddo as the pro-life movement is communicate this to\u200c the Republican Party and our conservative allies, as well,&#8221; Mr. Shirvell said.<\/p>\n<p>But \u201cI\u2019m being outspent here in\u2063 Florida.&#8221;<\/p>\n<h2>Approaching Conservatives \u2063on Their &#8216;Turf&#8217;<\/h2>\n<p>Tom Reilly, a real \u200bestate \u200cagent in Newberry, Florida, almost signed the petition to \u2064further the\u2063 pro-abortion effort because he misunderstood the mission \u200bof Floridians Protecting Freedom.<\/p>\n<p>Intrigued by the name, he approached the group&#8217;s booth at a gun show \u200bin Alachua County. It was the only booth he saw, other than the event&#8217;s sign-in table, he said.<\/p>\n<p>He was immediately confused by the group&#8217;s \u2062name, he said.<\/p>\n<div>\n<figure style=\"width:250px\" class=\"alignright\"><figcaption>Tom Reilly. (Courtesy of Tom Reilly)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>\u201cIs this pro-abortion, or anti-abortion?\u201d Mr. Reilly asked.<\/p>\n<p>At first glance, he&#8217;d assumed it was a conservative\u2063 effort to \u2064further restrict abortion\u2064 in \u200bthe state, considering the booth was at a gun \u2064show, an event that typically attracts a more conservative crowd, he \u2062said.<\/p>\n<p>Instead of answering his question, \u2062the petition gatherer motioned \u2062toward the group&#8217;s sign, Mr. Reilly said.<\/p>\n<p>When he inquired again for clarification regarding the group&#8217;s mission, \u2063she pointed \u200cto the sign, he said.<\/p>\n<p>Ultimately,\u2064 Mr. Reilly declined to sign, he said.<\/p>\n<p>He then called Mark Minck, the\u2062 sponsor of a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pas-democrat-secstate-resigns-after-botching-process-over-amendment-for-child-sex-abuse-victims\/\" title=\"PA\u2019s Democrat SecState Resigns After Botching Process Over Amendment For Child Sex Abuse Victims\">proposed constitutional amendment<\/a> \u200bto ban abortion\u200d in Florida. He\u200d asked if the booth represented that effort.<\/p>\n<p>It was then Mr.\u2063 Reilly realized he&#8217;d almost been duped into supporting \u200can effort to expand abortion access, rather than further restrict it, he said.<\/p>\n<p>Floridians Protecting Freedom did not respond to multiple requests from The Epoch Times for comment.<\/p>\n<p>But the group routinely collects signatures at \u201cbig events,\u201d such as community festivals and farmer\u2019s markets, \u200dand in smaller venues, such as book clubs and Father\u2019s Day gatherings, a representative said in an interview with\u200b the Orlando Sentinel.<\/p>\n<p>The Floridians Protecting Freedom\u2062 website describes the group as \u201ca statewide campaign of allied organizations and concerned citizens working together to protect Floridians\u2019 access to abortion as reproductive health \u2062care and defend\u200d the right to bodily autonomy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The group&#8217;s website says that \u201call Floridians\u200c deserve the freedom to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pentagon-announces-vaccine-mandate-for-u-s-military\/\" title=\"Pentagon Announces Vaccine Mandate For U.S. Military\">make personal medical decisions<\/a>, including about\u200c abortion, free \u2063of government intrusion.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>&#8216;God-Given Right to Life&#8217;<\/h2>\n<p>As Floridians \u200cProtecting Freedom works to put a proposal guaranteeing access to abortions on the ballot in Florida, Mr. Minck&#8217;s \u2063group\u200d is trying to meet the requirements to be able to ask \u2064voters to approve a far different change to the state constitution.<\/p>\n<p>Protect \u200bHuman Life Florida is collecting\u2062 petition signatures,<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In just four months, an initiative to amend the Florida state constitution for abortion access has gathered 147,524 petition signatures and received almost $5 million in donations. This concerns grassroots conservatives in Florida, who recently celebrated the passing of the Heartbeat Protection Act, which restricts abortions after six weeks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2377,"featured_media":2020465,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[543],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2020464","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-epoch-times"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2020464","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2377"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2020464"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2020464\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2020465"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2020464"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2020464"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2020464"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}