Abortion rights advocates continue to rally behind initiative to amend the AZ constitution

Advocates behind the Arizona for Abortion Access ballot initiative are pushing forward with their campaign, ignoring continued attempts from legislative Republicans to end access to reproductive health care. 

“The legislature has had since 1864 to repeal this ban, but regardless of whatever it is they’re doing, our campaign is moving forward… and we’re gonna keep moving forward because, until we have constitutional protections, those guys in there (the legislature) can do whatever they want,” Chris Love, spokeswoman and advocate for the ballot initiative told the Arizona Mirror. 

The Arizona for Abortion Access ballot initiative seeks to enshrine the right to abortion up to the point of fetal viability in the state constitution. Prior to the Supreme Court’s decision, the campaign had already announced that it had surpassed the threshold of signatures needed to make the ballot, and is aiming to file double the necessary amount. 

Love explained at a Wednesday press conference the recently leaked Republican plan to send competing abortion bans to the ballot in November in hopes of overloading and confusing voters to prevent them from voting in support of the Arizona Abortion Access initiative. 

“Their three phase scam…outlines their strategy to stop voters from securing abortion access, and therefore sink the Arizona Abortion Access act,” Love said. “They truly believe voters are stupid enough to fall for all of their shenanigans. They think voters would ditch or get too confused to vote for the Arizona Abortion Access act if they put forward a 6-week ban, a 12-week ban, and a 14-week ban that they say they’ll ‘disguise’ as a 15 week ban.” 

While details of what competing referrals would look like have yet to be announced, Scottsdale Republican Rep. Alexander Kolodin said that a GOP ballot referral is “coming soon,” confirming that voters will have the final say in deciding which policy becomes law.

Once again, Arizona Republicans block efforts to repeal the 1864 abortion ban

“It’s an act of desperation, because they know the same thing we know: that Arizonans want a fundamental right to abortion access in our state constitution so that never again do politicians have more say over our bodies than we do,” Love said. 

Angela Florez, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Arizona, told the Arizona Mirror that she feels as though the GOP’s insistence on centering abortion policy on how many weeks the patient has been pregnant, rather gauging than the health of the fetus, demonstrates their lack of understanding on the issue and the desires of voters. 

“Polling has shown us over and over again that viability language is what sits most comfortably with Arizona voters, so it’s clear that they are not speaking with all voters, they are speaking to a very small subset of constituents,” she said. 

Florez said that although the legislature’s hesitancy to repeal the ban has become “fuel for a surge of turnout” of voters rallying behind the ballot initiative, she worries for those that may not be able to get the care they need if the ban remains in place until Election Day.  

“The thing I’m most concerned about is access for patients to our health care centers between now and January,” she said. “How many patients are we going to have to turn away who desperately need abortion care?” 

Tempe OB-GYN Dr. Candace Lew said that, from now until the end of May, many providers will continue to practice as normal despite a “growing, creeping concern of uncertainty” as to what will happen once the ban goes into effect June 8. 

“Each and every provider is going to need to make their own decision. There are many, including myself, that would say, ‘No way, my obligation as a physician is to take care of my patients to the best of my ability with their health as my top priority, whether I be prosecuted or not, that’s what I need to do,’” Lew said. “But there are other providers…that will feel they need to leave the state, or retire early…and that’s a shame.”

***CORRECTION: This article has been updated to reflect that Angela Florez is the president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Arizona.