9 April 25th-MAy 1st, 2024 phoenixnewtimes.com PHOENIX NEW TIMES | NEWS | FEATURE | FOOD & DRINK | ARTS & CULTURE | MUSIC | CONCERTS | CANNABIS | ‘Fundamental Freedom’ Measure to enshrine abortion rights poised to reach Arizona ballot in November. BY TJ L’HEUREUX A ballot initiative that would allow voters to enshrine the right to abortion in Arizona’s constitution has garnered more than 500,000 signatures, according to Arizona for Abortion Access, the group organizing the campaign. That’s likely enough to send the measure to November’s ballot, considering the campaign needs 383,923 valid voter signatures. Organizers still have until July 4 to collect signatures. The Arizona Abortion Access Act would “establish a fundamental right” for Arizonans to get an abortion any time before viability, which is when a fetus can survive outside of the womb, typically after 23 or 24 weeks of gestation. After the fetus reaches viability, the state would be prevented from creating or enforcing laws that interfere with abortions that are necessary for the pregnant person’s health. Molly Gutterud, senior director of marketing and communications at Planned Parenthood Arizona, told Phoenix New Times in January that petitioners aimed to collect 800,000 signatures, which is more than double the minimum number of valid signatures. The campaign had collected 250,000 signatures as of Jan. 12. Cheryl Bruce, campaign manager for Arizona for Abortion Access, said in a written statement that organizers have “amassed a grassroots network of well over 3,000 volunteers across Arizona, from Bullhead City to Nogales and hundreds of communities in between.” “Voters are eager to sign this petition and have a direct say in restoring abortion access this November,” she added. The right to abortion, contraception and reproductive freedom is one of the central issues in this year’s elections, including the ballot initiative, the presi- dential race and state legislative campaigns. The Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022 brought about a chaotic struggle in Arizona, as well as the U.S., in which Democrats are working to guarantee abortion rights and Republicans are seeking to thwart laws establishing reproductive freedom. On April 9, the Arizona Supreme Court reinstated a 160-year-old near-total ban on abortion from. There are no exceptions in either law for rape or incest. Democrats in the Arizona State Legislature have since tried several times — and failed — to force a vote to repeal the ban. “The people of Arizona are gonna speak loud and clear in November, and they are gonna pass that ballot initiative to enshrine reproductive rights in our consti- tution,” Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes said at an event in Phoenix on April 3. “They are gonna enshrine it in the constitution so those extremist Republicans in the legislature can’t ever take it away from us.” Eyes across the nation are on Arizona for its key role in deciding the winner of the presidential showdown between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, who faces 91 felony charges in four states. Biden beat Trump in Arizona by just less than 10,500 votes in 2020. Mayes told a medley of organizers and press at a Biden campaign event on April 3 at Fair Trade Cafe in downtown Phoenix that, like the ballot initiative, the presiden- tial race will have a huge bearing on abor- tion access. “We also have to reelect Joe Biden and Kamala Harris to the White House to make sure that the extremists in Congress don’t try to impose a national ban on abortion, because that’s what they want,” Mayes said. “We know that’s what they want.” Trump said in March that he supports a national ban on abortions around 15 weeks of pregnancy. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat whose state voted for Trump in 2016 but later gave Democrats control of the legislature in November 2022, visited Arizona for the Biden campaign event. She highlighted Arizona’s essential role in Biden’s reelection. Whitmer warned voters that they likely will see Republicans change their positions on abortion rights, considering reproduc- tive freedom is popular among a large majority of Arizonans. “We cannot trust what they say, because we have seen extremist Republicans all across this country try to chip away at abortion rights,” Whitmer told the audience. Whitmer also told New Times she sees an opportunity for Democrats to challenge Republicans over the idea that Republicans actually want more freedom for Americans. “This is the most fundamental freedom: to decide whether and when to start a family,” Whitmer said. “I would say that the Democratic Party is solidly and fiercely on the side of protecting Americans’ freedoms.” Atsuko Koyama, a Phoenix family plan- ning physician, was also at the Biden campaign event and spoke about threats to her patients’ lives as a result of Arizona’s restrictive abortion laws. “My colleagues are having to determine if a pregnant patient is close enough to death — as defined by lawyers, legislators, hospital administrators and not doctors — to decide if they can provide the reproduc- tive health care interventions they provided before the overturn of Roe,” Koyama said. “The situation is dire. Pregnant women are living in fear of being criminalized for miscarriages, IVF is at risk, birth control may become inaccessible. “These bans and restrictions are inter- fering with our ability to provide medical care to you, your mother, your sisters, wives, family and friends,” Koyama added. “THIS IS THE MOST FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOM: TO DECIDE WHETHER AND WHEN TO START A FAMILY.” Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer spoke to Democratic organizers during a campaign event for President Joe Biden in downtown Phoenix on April 3. (Photo by TJ L’Heureux) Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes emphasized the need to pass a ballot initiative protecting abortion rights during a campaign event for President Joe Biden on April 3 in downtown Phoenix.(Photo by TJ L’Heureux) | NEWS |
