Kentucky amendment on abortion defeated

Kentucky voters rejected a ballot measure aimed at denying any constitutional protections for abortion, handing a victory to abortion-rights supporters who have seen access to the procedure eroded by Republican lawmakers.

The outcome of the election that concluded Tuesday highlighted what appeared to be a gap between voter sentiment and the expectations of Kentucky’s GOP-dominated legislature, which imposed a near-total ban on abortions and put the proposed constitutional amendment on the ballot.

The amendment’s defeat will have no practical impact on the right to an abortion if a sweeping ban on the procedure approved by lawmakers survives a legal challenge presently before the state Supreme Court. Still, the amendment’s rejection leaves open the possibility that abortion could someday be declared a state right by the court.

Abortion-rights supporters who suffered years of setbacks in Kentucky’s legislature said considerably more work is ahead in their quest to restore access to the procedure.

The Family Foundation, a faith-based organization opposed to abortion, said Wednesday that “the fight for the unborn” will continue.

“While we are disappointed in the results of Amendment 2, the pro-life movement in Kentucky and across the nation, is steadfast in its resolve to continue defending life,” David Walls, the group’s executive director, said in a written statement. “Kentucky’s laws protecting preborn children remain in place and Kentuckians have returned large, pro-life legislative majorities to the General Assembly.”

The Kentucky ballot question had asked voters if they wanted to amend the constitution to say: “To protect human life, nothing in this Constitution shall be construed to secure or protect a right to abortion or require the funding of abortion.”

A year ago, lawmakers had added the proposed amendment to the 2022 general election slate in a move some thought would drive more conservative voters to the polls at a time before the U.S. Supreme Court decision in June overturning Roe v. Wade.

Kentucky was among a handful of states with abortion referendums on the ballot this fall.

The Kentucky Supreme Court has a hearing next week on challenges by the state’s two remaining abortion clinics to the near-total abortion ban approved by lawmakers. The high court ruled this summer that the ban would stay in place while it reviewed the challenges.



Community members gather to protest the U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade and Kentucky's trigger law to ban abortion, at Circus Square Park in Bowling Green, Ky., on Saturday, June 25, 2022. (Grace Ramey/Daily News via AP, File)