{"id":2579849,"date":"2026-03-14T12:06:01","date_gmt":"2026-03-14T16:06:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/legal-group-files-challenge-to-virginia-abortion-ballot-push\/"},"modified":"2026-03-14T12:09:07","modified_gmt":"2026-03-14T16:09:07","slug":"legal-group-files-challenge-to-virginia-abortion-ballot-push","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/legal-group-files-challenge-to-virginia-abortion-ballot-push\/","title":{"rendered":"Legal Group Files Challenge to Virginia Abortion Ballot Push"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/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%2Flegal-group-files-challenge-to-virginia-abortion-ballot-push%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=2579849&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--><p>A conservative group has filed a lawsuit in Bedford County, Virginia, challenging the process used to approve a ballot measure that would <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/vulnerable-dem-mum-on-bidens-call-to-abolish-filibuster\/\" title=\"Vulnerable Dem Mum on Biden\u2019s Call To Abolish Filibuster\">enshrine abortion rights<\/a> in the state constitution.Liberty Counsel is representing Charla Bansley, the District 3 Supervisor of Bedford County, adn alleges that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/new-trump-campaign-takes-fight-over-pennsylvania-election-and-mail-in-ballot-laws-to-us-supreme-court\/\" title=\"NEW: Trump Campaign Takes Fight Over Pennsylvania Election and Mail-In Ballot Laws to US Supreme Court\">state election officials<\/a> did not follow Virginia\u2019s constitutional amendment procedures before placing the measure-Virginia House Joint Resolution 1-before voters. The suit contends that required steps,including distributing the amendment to circuit court clerks and posting notice publicly three months before the 2025 election,were not properly completed,and that Virginia\u2019s process also requires two successive legislative sessions with an interim waiting period before a amendment can go to voters.Because these notice and posting requirements allegedly were not satisfied,the filing argues the 2026 approval would be void and wholly ineffective. The measure would create a \u201cfundamental right to reproductive freedom\u201d in the Virginia Constitution.The lawsuit comes as Democrats gained power in the 2025 elections,reshaping state leadership. Liberty Counsel\u2019s Mat Staver argues the measure cannot legally appear on the ballot under the state constitution\u2019s procedural safeguards.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Virginia voters are likely to consider a ballot measure later this year to enshrine abortion into their state constitution.<\/p>\n<p>But a new lawsuit from a conservative legal group is claiming the process used to approve the measure was not carried out correctly.<\/p>\n<p>Liberty Counsel <a href=\"https:\/\/lc.org\/newsroom\/details\/030426-lawsuit-challenges-virginia-proabortion-ballot-measure\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">announced<\/a> on March 4 that they filed a complaint in Bedford County, Virginia, against state election officials who allegedly failed to &ldquo;follow the state&rsquo;s constitutional amendment process when approving a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/heavily-challenged-amendment-protecting-abortion-heads-to-michigan-voters-after-ruling-from-state-supreme-court\/\" title=\"Heavily-Challenged ... Protecting Abortion Heads To Michigan ... After Ruling From ... Supreme Court\">pro-abortion amendment<\/a> for the 2026 ballot.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The lawsuit was submitted on behalf of plaintiff Charla Bansley, the District 3 Supervisor for the Bedford County Board of Supervisors.<\/p>\n<p>Bansley claimed that the Virginia House of Delegates &ldquo;missed several <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >key procedural steps mandated<\/a> by the Virginia Constitution before the amendment can go before the voters,&rdquo; Liberty Counsel said.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadAnyclip() { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst container=document.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!container) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=\"https:\/\/player.anyclip.com\/anyclip-widget\/lre-widget\/prod\/v1\/src\/lre.js\"; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"pubname\", \"westernjournalcom\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"widgetname\", \"001w000001jULVcAAO_M12924\");  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ append inside the container so player shows in correct spot \t\t\t\t\t\tcontainer.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadAnyclip(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #anyclipvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#anyclipvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">&#128680;We filed a lawsuit challenging Virginia&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/illinois-gov-jb-pritzker-creates-abortion-supporting-nonprofit-group\/\" title=\"Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker forms pro-choice nonprofit organization.\">pro-abortion ballot measure<\/a> that would establish a &ldquo;fundamental right to reproductive freedom&rdquo; in the Virginia Constitution if passed. Virginia state election officials failed to follow the state&rsquo;s constitutional amendment process when&hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/ApWKIjGzCY\">pic.twitter.com\/ApWKIjGzCY<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Liberty Counsel (@libertycounsel) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/libertycounsel\/status\/2029226552127304053?\">March 4, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>They were supposed to distribute the amendment to circuit court clerks across the state, as well as post the measure for public inspection three months out to the 2025 election, the group noted.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The Virginia Constitution also requires that proposed amendments be approved in two successive legislative sessions with delegate election cycles in between before going before voters,&rdquo; Liberty Counsel added.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Because the required notice and posting did not occur in all the state&rsquo;s circuit courts in the three months before the 2025 House of Delegates election, that cycle cannot satisfy the state constitutional notice obligation and waiting period.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The approval of the amendment in the 2026 session is therefore &ldquo;void&rdquo; and &ldquo;wholly ineffective,&rdquo; according to the lawsuit.<\/p>\n<p>The greenlighting of the abortion ballot amendment known as Virginia House Joint Resolution 1 &mdash; which would <a href=\"https:\/\/ballotpedia.org\/Virginia_Right_to_Reproductive_Freedom_Amendment_(2026)\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">enshrine<\/a> the murder of preborn babies as a &ldquo;right to reproductive freedom&rdquo; in the Virginia Constitution &mdash; comes after Democrats in Old Dominion made substantial electoral gains in 2025.<\/p>\n<p>Beyond shoring up their majorities in the Virginia General Assembly, they flipped the positions of Governor and Attorney General.<\/p>\n<p>Virginia Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin was unable to run for a second consecutive term &mdash; a unique arrangement established by the Virginia Constitution &mdash; and Democratic Rep. Abigail Spanberger soundly defeated now-former Virginia Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears to become chief executive.<\/p>\n<p>Mat Staver, founder and chairman of Liberty Counsel, argued in a statement that &ldquo;Virginia&rsquo;s House Joint Resolution 1 cannot legally appear on the ballot.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This measure is invalid because the General Assembly advanced it to a second legislative vote without completing the constitutionally mandated notice and posting requirements that must occur after its first passage,&rdquo; he contended.<\/p>\n<p>Staver added that &ldquo;the Constitution of Virginia requires strict, step by step compliance with the amendment process so that voters receive proper notice and can evaluate proposed changes to their governing charter before a consequential election.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;These procedures exist to protect the people&rsquo;s right to transparent, orderly constitutional change, and any misstep undermines the integrity of the amendment process and can interfere with the will of the voters,&rdquo; he said.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Virginia voters may be asked later this year to approve a measure that would enshrine abortion as a right in the state constitution. But a conservative legal group, Liberty Counsel, has filed a lawsuit contending the process used to clear the measure for the ballot was not properly followed. The complaint, submitted March 4 in Bedford County on behalf of Charla Bansley, a District 3 supervisor on the Bedford County Board of Supervisors, argues that the Virginia House of Delegates skipped several key steps required by the state constitution before the amendment could go before voters.<\/p>\n<p>Liberty Counsel says the amendment was not properly circulated to circuit court clerks or publicly posted for review three months before the 2025 election cycle, and that the constitution requires the proposal to be approved in two successive legislative sessions with a break for delegate elections in between. Because these notices and postings allegedly did not occur across all circuit courts within that window, the group contends the 2026 approval is void and ineffective. The measure in question, House Joint Resolution 1, would declare a \u201cfundamental right to reproductive freedom\u201d in Virginia\u2019s Constitution and follows a strong Democratic performance in 2025, including changes in the governor and attorney general offices.<\/p>\n<p>Liberty Counsel founder Mat Staver stated that the resolution cannot lawfully appear on the ballot, arguing that the General Assembly advanced it to a second vote without completing the constitutionally mandated notice and posting. He insisted that Virginia&#8217;s amendment process requires careful, transparent steps so voters can assess proposed changes before a consequential election, and that any misstep undermines the integrity of the process and voters\u2019 will<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2579850,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Michael-Featured-Image-792.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[4310,75801,4585,74379,5468],"class_list":["post-2579849","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-abortion","tag-ballot-measure-2","tag-lawsuit","tag-legal-challenge-2","tag-virginia"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Michael-Featured-Image-792.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2579849","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\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2579849"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2579849\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2579853,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2579849\/revisions\/2579853"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2579850"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2579849"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2579849"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2579849"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}