The Ohio Republican Party notified voters where Ohio Democrats stand on abortion before a November ballot initiative that would enshrine abortion into the state Constitution.
The Ohioans for Reproductive Freedom proposed “The Right to Reproductive Freedom with Protections for Health and Safety,” which would add Section 22 to Article 1 of the state Constitution.
The proposal would remove Ohio’s parental notification legislation when a minor wants an abortion and the requirement that abortionists adhere to fundamental hospital health and safety standards. The proposal also aims to permit abortions after babies have heartbeats and can feel pain.
According to the Ohio GOP, Ohio voters deserve to understand where state Democrats stand on the issue of abortion prior to the November general election.
“In the coming months, Ohioans from all sides of the political spectrum are going to heavily debate the ghoulish November abortion ballot initiative. As a starting point, let’s all remember exactly where Ohio Democrats stand: Ohioans deserve to understand the simple fact that Democrats believe there should be ZERO restrictions on abortion, so long as they can get sign-off from a Planned Parenthood abortion provider,” the Ohio GOP said last week.
In July 2022, House Minority Leader Allison Russo (D-Upper Arlington) preluded this constitutional amendment saying that she supports legalizing abortions in Ohio without restrictions. However, a Democratic plan to “protect” abortion in the state constitution may end up less extensive than she would prefer.
“Allison Russo previously said that while she favors legalizing abortion with no restrictions, a Democratic plan to protect the procedure in the Ohio Constitution “may” wind up less sweeping. Now it looks like she is trying to have her cake and eat it too,” the Ohio GOP said.
Last year, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and President Joe Biden made a significant push to remove the Hyde Amendment, which prevented federal funding of abortion in most cases for over 40 years under presidents of both parties.
In addition to utilizing hard-earned tax money to fund elective abortion, Brown has routinely voted to reduce or block protections for the unborn and children born alive following unsuccessful abortions.
Although former President Bill Clinton (D) stated in 1992 that he wanted abortion to be “safe, legal, and rare,” a 2019 article by the Washington Post claims that “by 2012 the Democratic Party excised the word ‘rare’ from its official platform, writing instead that it favored ‘safe and legal abortion, regardless of ability to pay.'”
According to the Ohio GOP, the days of Democrats believing that abortions should rarely occur are long gone.
“While Democrats used to believe abortion should be “safe, legal and rare,” those days are now gone. Sherrod Brown’s own wife wouldn’t even give him a date until he proved his 100 percent anti-life record!” the Ohio GOP said.
The Ohio GOP claimed that Ohioans will reject Democrats’ radical stance on abortion, taxpayer-funded, with zero restrictions at the November general election.
The Ohio Star contacted Russo and Brown for comment but did not receive a reply before press time.
At the polls, Ohio voters defeated Issue 1 last month, which would have raised the threshold to approve a constitutional amendment; the amendment only requires a simple majority to pass.
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Hannah Poling is a lead reporter at The Ohio Star, The Star News Network, and The Tennessee Star. Follow Hannah on Twitter @HannahPoling1. Email tips to [email protected]
Photo “Abortion Supporters” by Becker1999. CC BY 2.0.
