Huron County Democratic Party endorses November ballot Issue 1

The Huron County Democratic Party has issued the following statement regarding Issue 1 on the November ballot:

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The Huron County Democratic Party believes in freedom, including the right of every citizen to shape their own life, and their beliefs -- so long as it does not infringe on the rights or safety of others, and the right to privacy. We also believe in justice where every citizen is safe in their person and their home, and their day-to-day lives.

But Ohio statehouse Republicans have passed a looming, severe abortion ban which would deprive Ohioans of these rights in reproductive decisions and endanger the health and safety of women.

Issue 1 -- The Right to Reproductive Freedom with Protections for Health and Safety amendment -- guards against such oppression by prohibiting the government from imposing itself in or interfering with the exercise of these rights by women and their families. Medical professionals and the individuals involved are the only ones qualified to make the right decisions in very difficult situations. This amendment is about putting Ohioans in charge of these decisions and keeping government out of our private business. It also puts the health and safety of the pregnant individual first. Beyond that, we think the best way to avoid disinformation and learn about the Reproductive Freedom amendment is to read the simple full text of the amendment itself (shown below, and at hurondems.org/petition).

However, the Republican-controlled legislature is allowing vast amounts of dark money to flow in and swamp Ohioans with deceptive ads. So, we think it is important to make the following points clear:

• - Issue 1 is about reproductive health decisions only, not gender-affirming care. Claims otherwise are an attempt to confuse and deceive Ohio voters about the goal of this amendment, which is to protect families’ personal medical decisions.
• - Issue 1 does not infringe on parental rights and does not give underage minors access to abortions. Current laws will not change for those under age 18. This amendment does not specifically change state law, but it will make sure that the interests of patients come ahead of extreme politics.
• In some cases, there may be health issues or a life-threatening fetal diagnosis that leads to an abortion later in a pregnancy. Statements that this amendment allows abortion up to the moment of birth are simply not true. This is an inflammatory and deceptive claim by anti-abortion extremists meant to distract from their attempt to ban abortion entirely.

Further, Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose has twisted and hacked at the amendment text to create misleading, nearly inscrutable ballot language. His "summary" is actually longer that the text of the amendment itself. So, it is important for citizens to read the actual text of the amendment before voting.

We strongly endorse the Reproductive Freedom amendment and urge citizens to read the amendment full text, and vote "Yes" on Issue 1 in the upcoming November election.

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FULL TEXT of AMENDMENT

Be it Resolved by the People of the State of Ohio that Article I of the Ohio Constitution is amended to add the following Section:
Article I, Section 22. The Right to Reproductive Freedom with Protections for Health and Safety
A. Every individual has a right to make and carry out one’s own reproductive decisions, including but not limited to decisions on:
1. contraception;
2. fertility treatment;
3. continuing one’s own pregnancy;
4. miscarriage care; and
5. abortion.
B. The State shall not, directly or indirectly, burden, penalize, prohibit, interfere with, or discriminate against either:
1. An individual’s voluntary exercise of this right or
2. A person or entity that assists an individual exercising this right, unless the State demonstrates that it is using the least restrictive means to advance the individual’s health in accordance with widely accepted and evidence-based standards of care. However, abortion may be prohibited after fetal viability. But in no case may such an abortion be prohibited if in the professional judgment of the pregnant patient’s treating physician it is necessary to protect the pregnant patient’s life or health.
C. As used in this Section:
1. “Fetal viability” means “the point in a pregnancy when, in the professional judgment of the pregnant patient’s treating physician, the fetus has a significant likelihood of survival outside the uterus with reasonable measures. This is determined on a case-by-case basis.”
2. “State” includes any governmental entity and any political subdivision.
D. This Section is self-executing.

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