Voters receive their ballots as Lawrence County residents head to the polls to vote on Ohio Issue 1 during a special one-issue election August 8, 2023, at Fairland High School in Proctorville, Ohio.
Ohio voters on Tuesday overwhelmingly rejected an effort to make it harder to change the state constitution in a special election that Republicans brazenly concocted to thwart an upcoming abortion vote. The pro-choice position has now won in all seven statewide votes since the fall of Roe v. Wade.
Issue 1 failed by a vote of about 61% to 39%, or a more than 20-point difference, per the New York Times. Decision Desk first called the race shortly after 8pm. By comparison, a July poll from Suffolk University found that 57% of voters opposed Issue 1, with only 26% in support and 17% undecided. The pro-choice position of voting no even outperformed President Joe Biden in the 2020 election; Biden earned 45% of the vote in what is now firmly a red state. Early voting turnout was off the charts, and one political firm told AP that the data favored Democratic-leaning voters.
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Abortion is currently legal in the state, but only because a judge blocked a six-week ban from taking effect in October 2022. The ban could take effect during the appeals process so Ohio advocates are leaving nothing to chance. Now, advocates will turn their attention to passing the abortion amendment this November.
This is a breaking news post and will be updated.
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