by Eric Lendrum
In the second major defeat for a pro-abortion ballot measure since the overturning of Roe v. Wade, South Dakota voters rejected a referendum that would have added the “right” to an abortion to the state’s constitution.
According to the Washington Examiner, 61% of South Dakota voters rejected Amendment G, which would have been enacted with a simple majority. The Associated Press called the race in favor of the “no” vote at about 3:00 AM Eastern Standard Time, with 65% of the vote in.
If it had won, Amendment G would have allowed all South Dakotan women the right to have an abortion in the first trimester, or the first 12 weeks. Abortions under the second trimester, 13 weeks to 27 weeks, would be regulated “only in ways that are reasonably related to the physical health of the pregnant woman.”
The defeat of Amendment G in South Dakota follows the defeat of a similar measure in Florida. Amendment 4, which similarly would have established a constitutional right to abortion, failed despite receiving majority support, as it did not cross the necessary threshold of 60% of the popular vote.
Following the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization in 2022, the precedent established by Roe declaring abortion to be a national right was overturned, and the matter of abortion was returned to the individual states to be determined. In 2022, numerous states passed pro-abortion ballot measures, referendums, and amendments, with Democrats declaring that abortion had become a motivating issue that could singlehandedly win them elections even in red states. As such, the defeats in Florida and South Dakota suggest that there may still be a popular sentiment against abortion in certain states.
South Dakota remains one of the most conservative states on the issue of abortion, as it is one of only nine states with no legal exceptions for an abortion.
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Eric Lendrum reports for American Greatness.
Photo “South Dakota Capitol” by Jimmy Emerson, DVM. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
