Ohio – defeat of Issue 1 – what it means

What the Ohio special election results mean for abortion rights

For months Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose denied he had switched positions on August special elections because of abortion rights. But in June, video footage reported by News 5 Cleveland and the Ohio Capital Journal showed LaRose admitting abortion was motivating his stance. “Some people say this is all about abortion. Well, you know what?” he was recorded saying. “It’s 100 percent about keeping a radical pro-abortion amendment out of our constitution — the left wants to jam it in there this coming November.” (LaRose announced last month that he is running for US Senate.)

Read more at Vox

Ohio voters reject measure aimed at blocking abortion rights amendment

The amendment on Ohio’s ballot in November would establish an affirmative right to abortion and other reproductive health care, including pregnancy care, miscarriage care and contraception. It’s modeled after a constitutional amendment Michigan voters passed with 57 percent of the vote in the 2022 midterms. While recent polls have shown a majority of voters support the Ohio abortion amendment, passing an amendment with 60 percent of the vote would be a much more difficult task for organizers than a simple majority.