Nebraska passes abortion restriction amendment, bucking national trend • Nebraska Examiner

BELLEVUE, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska voters faced a nation-first test Tuesday by voting on two competing constitutional amendments on abortion in the same election — and they appeared poised to buck the national trend by endorsing abortion restrictions.

Voters passed Initiative 434, an abortion restriction amendment that bans most abortions after the first trimester, with exceptions for the life of the mother, rape and incest. The measure also gives lawmakers the authority to impose additional restrictions, up to and including a total ban.

As of 2:20 a.m. Wednesday, the reading was over 55% to 45%. In Douglas County, the state's most populous, at least 9,000 ballots remained to be counted. But the Associated Press concluded around 1 a.m Wednesday that the measure would pass.

Jessica Flanagain, a policy consultant for Protect Women and Children, said the victory showed supporters of abortion restrictions that there was a way to fight back against “what has been a tsunami of pro-abortion constitutional changes.”

“It is also an opportunity for the states where these initiatives have already been lost to come back and discuss the issue with voters again,” she said.

Organizers said the vote early Wednesday was too close to call Initiative 439, an abortion rights amendment that would add to the Nebraska Constitution a right to abortion until the fetus is viable, with the timing to be determined by an attending physician would be determined.

As of 2:20 a.m. the value was 51-49%

Allie Berry, campaign manager for Protect Our Rights, said in a statement that she knew the race would be close and that “there are still many votes to count and every Nebraskan deserves to have their voice heard.”

Nebraska was among 10 states where abortion-related measures were on the ballot Tuesday. Before this election, every state's vote on abortion changed since the U.S. Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade repealed and advocated for abortion rights measures.

National advocates on all sides of the issue have been watching Nebraska to see the outcome of anti-abortion groups' novel approach to putting a competing option on the ballot.

In Nebraska, Republicans outnumber Democrats about 2-to-1, with about a quarter of voters registered as nonpartisan or third-party members. Party affiliation has not always determined the outcome of abortion ballot measures.

Voters in neighboring Kansas, another conservative state, voted to protect abortion rights, two months after the Supreme Court struck down a national right to abortion.

Abortion restriction advocates celebrated the victory, saying they helped a conservative, “pro-life” state launch a well-funded national effort to expand and consolidate abortion rights and eliminate state restrictions on the procedure, including a state law requiring parental notification , to overcome.

Supporters of the abortion restrictions amendment said voters simply concluded that Initiative 439, the abortion rights amendment, went too far. They said it gave midwives and doulas too much latitude to decide viability; In their opinion, decisions should best be left to doctors.

Sandy Danek, executive director of Nebraska Right to Life, said her group is grateful for “people who have worked tirelessly at the grassroots level to educate the public on this issue so they can make an informed decision at the polls.”

“Nebraskans have spoken; They voted for the dignity of both mothers and the children in their wombs,” Danek said.

Some critics of Initiative 434 said it muddied the waters by selling the abortion restrictions amendment as a moderate alternative to the abortion rights amendment.

Protect Women and Children and other supporters of Initiative 434 have acknowledged that their measure was designed to appear moderate but leave legal room for additional restrictions.

Abortion rights advocates have argued that the abortion restrictions amendment obscures the risks of current and future abortion bans to women. They warned of the consequences, including the need to leave the state for reproductive care to avoid injury or death.

Some argued that lawmakers would now pursue additional restrictions, up to and including a complete ban. Many pointed out how close state senators came to passing a ban in 2023, about six weeks into a pregnancy, falling a single vote short.

Current Nebraska law bans most abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy, with exceptions after that if the mother's life is involved or rape or incest is involved.

Local political observers expect Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen, with the advice of Attorney General Mike Hilgers, to quickly acknowledge passage of the abortion restrictions amendment after the votes are certified. He had no immediate comment early Wednesday. Pillen and Hilgers supported Initiative 434.