Kentucky voters reject constitutional amendment on abortion
Kentucky voters have rejected a proposed constitutional amendment that would have removed any protection for abortion rights from the constitution of their deeply red state
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — 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 in the deeply red state.
The outcome of Tuesday's election highlighted what appeared to be a gap between voter sentiment and the expectations of Kentucky's Republican-dominated legislature, which imposed a near-total ban on abortions and put the proposed constitutional amendment on the ballot.
While a significant moral victory for abortion-rights advocates, 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 be declared a state right by the court.
