Group files paperwork for Nebraska ballot initiative seeking abortion rights amendment
Protect Our Rights filing indicates the group intends to put the matter before voters in 2024
LINCOLN, Neb. (WOWT) - A group called Protect Our Rights filed paperwork to begin the process of getting an initiative on a ballot next year.
The filing indicates that the newly formed group intends to push for an amendment to Nebraska’s Constitution that would protect the right to have an abortion.
Initial papers for the ballot initiative were filed with the Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission on Friday, Aug. 4 — a week before a Lancaster County district judge upheld LB-574, also known as the “Let Them Grow Act,” which was passed by the Legislature earlier this year. The law bans gender-affirming care for minors but also includes an amendment banning abortion after 12 weeks gestation.
In order for the amendment question to be put in front of voters, the group will need to get 10% of registered voters in the state to sign the petition. Those signatures will also need to represent 5% of registered voters in 38 of Nebraska’s 93 counties to qualify for the ballot.
According to the NADC filing records, the latest update on the ballot initiative registration happened Thursday. The filing documents list Andi Curry Grubb of Planned Parenthood; Ashlei Spivey, executive director of I Be Black Girl as organizers; and Shelley Mann, executive director of Nebraska Abortion Resources, also known as NEAR, as organizers of the initiative.
“Protect our Rights is a grassroots coalition who believe that all Nebraskans have a right to the freedom to make their own decisions about pregnancy and abortion, without government interference. We are committed to exploring all possible options to protect our rights in Nebraska and restore the rights Nebraskans lost when politicians passed an abortion ban earlier this year.
We are considering a ballot initiative, specifically, because we know the majority of Nebraskans agree that the government shouldn’t be involved in personal decisions about healthcare. These deeply personal decisions should be treated with compassion and privacy, without government or political interference.”
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