Abortion rights activists rally in protest against six-week abortion bill at the old Florida Historic Capitol on March 29, 2023. (Photo by Briana Michel/Florida Phoenix)
Florida voters declined to protect abortion access in the state constitution, making it the first state to reject such a proposal since Roe v. Wade was overturned.
Amendment 4, aimed at limiting government interference with abortion, fell short of the 60% approval it needed to become part of Florida’s Constitution, getting 57% approval, with 43% opposing it. The result marks a major victory for Gov. Ron DeSantis, who deployed state resources litigating and advocating against passage of the measure.
Amendment sponsor Floridians Protecting Freedom had to meet a higher voter approval threshold than most other states. And to do so, the group raised $100 million, far outraising any other abortion rights ballot measure in the post-Roe years.
The failure follows the enactment in May of a law banning most abortions after six weeks of gestation.
Messaging from the Yes on 4 campaign portrayed the amendment as a nonpartisan last resort against an extreme abortion ban that harms women and puts doctors at risk of going to prison. That depiction wasn’t enough to counteract DeSantis’ push for voters to reject the amendment because of what he called its vagueness and removal of a parental consent requirement.
In the months leading to the election, the governor mobilized state agencies against the amendment, drawing legal disputes and intense backlash. Those efforts included a report accusing the sponsor of fraud in the petition collection process, threats of criminal charges against broadcasters airing a Yes on 4 ad, and a webpage claiming the amendment “threatens women’s safety.”
DeSantis spent two weeks touring the state criticizing Amendment 4 with agency heads and a group of anti-abortion doctors.
The governor also sought to defeat the amendment to legalize recreational marijuana for adults, but his show of strength against the abortion amendment stretched further into delegitimizing it.
Supporters of the amendment are expected to soon speak at the Yes on 4 Campaign’s event in St. Petersburg. We’ll update this story with some of those comments.