• Ohio voters approved an abortion rights amendment with a 57-43% majority, which Republican lawmakers are now challenging.
• GOP legislators propose requiring a 60% majority for citizen-led ballot issues, potentially affecting future constitutional amendments.
• The amendment protects abortion rights and other reproductive health measures, but does not nullify existing laws like Ohio’s heartbeat law.
• Ohio Right to Life opposes the amendment, arguing against abortion as healthcare, while abortion rights advocates accelerate efforts for its implementation.
• Key Republicans, including House Speaker Jason Stephens and other lawmakers, are exploring ways to limit the judiciary’s authority over the amendment.

In Ohio, a significant political struggle is unfolding as Republican lawmakers are attempting to circumvent the will of the voting public regarding an abortion rights amendment. This amendment, approved by Ohio voters with a 57-43% majority (Political Wire), seeks to protect abortion and other reproductive rights. However, it is facing challenges from GOP legislators who are exploring strategies to undermine its implementation and effectiveness.

The primary tactic being considered by these legislators is to reintroduce a proposal that would require citizen-led ballot issues to achieve at least a 60% majority for passage. This proposal, if enacted, would significantly raise the threshold for approving constitutional amendments, including those related to abortion rights (Ideastream Public Media). Such a rule, had it been in place earlier, would have resulted in the failure of similar measures in other states, such as Michigan, where an abortion rights guarantee passed with a 57% vote (Ideastream Public Media).

The Ohio amendment encompasses the right to an abortion and ensures protection for other reproductive health measures, including contraception and fertility treatments. It permits the state to prohibit abortions post-viability but includes exceptions for late-term abortions if necessary to protect the patient’s life or health (Ideastream Public Media).

This amendment does not automatically nullify existing abortion-related laws in Ohio, like the heartbeat law, which bans abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected, usually around six weeks into a pregnancy. This law, signed by Republican Governor Mike DeWine in 2019, took effect following the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022 (Reuters).

Opponents of the amendment, such as Ohio Right to Life, argue against the inclusion of abortion as healthcare in the state constitution. They are actively campaigning to prevent the amendment’s implementation, emphasizing the potential harm to women and preborn children from abortion procedures (Ideastream Public Media).

In response, abortion rights advocates are accelerating their efforts to secure the amendment’s implementation before any new rules affecting constitutional amendments can take effect. Aware of the Republican-led “60% solution” amendment potentially being placed on the ballot, these advocates recognize the urgency of their actions to safeguard the amendment passed by the majority of Ohio voters (Ideastream Public Media).

Key figures in this challenge include House Speaker Jason Stephens and a group of Republican lawmakers, both new and veteran, who are vice-chairs of various House committees (Crooks and Liars). They are intent on exploring multiple paths to continue protecting what they consider innocent life and are considering steps to remove the judiciary’s authority over interpreting the abortion rights amendment.

These developments represent a clear attempt by Republican legislators to override the decision made by Ohio’s electorate, indicating a significant political and ideological battle over the future of abortion rights in the state (Political Wire, Crooks and Liars, Ideastream Public Media, Reuters).