A ballot initiative in Florida to enshrine basically unrestricted abortion in the state constitution is being blocked by the state’s conservatives. The measure, Amendment 4, is backed by a group that has raised almost$ 40 million, with more than 85 percent of that coming from donations of$ 50, 000 or more.
According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Amendment 4 did permit abortion on-demand through the 25th month of pregnancy, which is the point at which fetus can develop outside of the pregnancy. More important, the amendment would permit abortion at any time with a determination by a “healthcare company” that an pregnancy is “necessary to defend the patient’s health”. The proposed legislation would replace the necessity that parents become informed of a slight having an abortion with the addition of requiring parental consent for a small to have an abortion.
If Amendment 4 moves, a Planned Parenthood “health care provider” ( a term no defined under Florida law ) may decide that an abortion is necessary to protect a woman’s health — even a child’s health, and possibly her “mental health”. The determination may be based on “protecting” the girl from the typical challenges of pregnancy and birth, worry over having a baby, or the risk of post-partum despair.
That similar “health care service” may therefore perform the pregnancy, with no restriction on how late in the pregnancy the pregnancy may be performed. The law would just require that the woman’s parents be informed if the person were a slight.
This program was supported by a team called” Floridians Protecting Freedom” and received close to 1 million signatures to put it on the ballot. Donors of the program are organizing their floor plan for November, including recruiting staffers, distributing garden signs, and continuing to raise funds. They are also ramping up their spending, with more than$ 500, 000 of their$ 16 million cash on-hand spent in the week ending Aug. 2 alone.
Polling shows a majority of voters backing this amendment, including a majority of Florida Republicans. How could a pro-abortion amendment of this kind make such a significant impact in a conservative Florida? A big part of the answer: the failure of the Republican Party of Florida ( RFOP) to mount any effective opposition.
In 2022, five of the seven Florida State Supreme Court justices were up for re-election, including pro-abortion justice Jorge Labarga. One of the four-to-three majority that approved the initiative being put on the ballot is Labarga. For that judicial election, the RPOF did not publish a candidate list. Labarga, a former Democrat Gov. Charlie Christ appointee, was easily re-elected.
Deceptive Phrasing
A November 2023 poll by the North Florida University shows 62 percent of Florida voters approve of this amendment, including 53 percent of Republicans. This contrasts with Gallup’s survey from July 2023, which found that 70 % of Americans oppose legal abortion in the third trimester and 55 % of Americans oppose legal abortion in the second trimester ( which begins at 12 weeks under Florida law ).
Are we led to believe that Florida Republicans are more anti-abortionist than the average American? No, the answer is no. The broad support for abortion is explained by how Amendment 4 frames it. When framed in terms of trimesters, as Gallup does, most people oppose second-trimester and later abortions. Most people support abortions that could occur as late as the third trimester when viewed in terms of fetal viability ( as Amendment 4 does ).
This disparity demonstrates the Florida amendment’s deceptive genius in crafting it as well as its flaw: reframe the issue with trimesters and support for the amendment would decline. If voters realized that giving minors the right to choose their own abortions would mean they no longer had parental consent, this amendment could be defeated.
Florida GOP Raises Money to Do Nothing
When the initiative’s backers were using paid, out-of-state solicitors to gather petition signatures, the RPOF did little to educate conservatives about what this amendment would do. When the state supreme court heard the amendment, the RPOF did n’t bother to submit an amicus brief.
The RPOF issued a symbolic resolution opposing the amendment after it was approved for the ballot on April 1. In its statement of opinion on proposed amendments, the RPOF includes a statement opposing Amendment 4.  ,
The RPOF was unable to stop fundraising off this amendment because they were not effectively fighting it.  , On the two-year anniversary of the Dobbs decision, the RPOF sent an email asking for signatures on an” OFFICIAL PETITION” opposing this amendment ( all caps courtesy of the RPOF). Without making a specific commitment to use the funds to fight Amendment 4, this legally meaningless petition leads to a fundraising page for “benefit]the ] Republican Party of Florida.”
Florida’s GOP Could Win This Fight
Given Ohio’s recent passage of a similar abortion-on-demand state constitutional amendment, the Florida Republican Party may think they ca n’t win this election. If so, the party is missing several key points.
Most conservatives would oppose this amendment if they knew what it would do because it is so radical. In Florida, the state constitution amendment needs the approval of 60 % of the voters, compared to 50 % in Ohio. Florida is 39 percent registered Republican, giving the RPOF a two-to-one advantage over Ohio’s GOP.
If the RPOF fails to successfully oppose this amendment, the RPOF may be counting on pro-life activists to remain silent. Sadly, they might be right. What would pro-life advocates in Florida do if Amendment 4 were to be taken only as a symbolic measure by the RPOF? Vote Democrat? Not likely.
Right Now, what might RPOF do?
The RPOF would need to use all of its resources to defeat Amendment 4 at this late in the process.  ,
The RPOF could send a fact sheet about Amendment 4 to each of Florida’s 67 county Republican Executive Committees ( RECs ) and all state’s chartered Republican clubs with instructions to email and text it to their members. It could pin such a fact sheet on the RPOF’s Facebook page and prominently display it on its website, Instagram, and X pages. Additionally, the RPOF could send a number of emails and texts to each voter on the RPOF’s contact lists outlining how radical Amendment 4 is.
In this conflict, the Florida GOP might include other conservative organizations, including Young Americans for Freedom’s Florida chapter. Another step is to recruit leaders of conservative religious organizations at the state and regional levels to model the Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops and educate their congregations about Amendment 4
Additionally, the RPOF could issue yard signs and pamphlets for RECs and clubs in opposition to Amendment 4. Other organizations that are opposed to Amendment 4 might receive funding from it, such as Florida Voters Against Extremism and Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America. Finally, it might change the conversation about abortion by pointing out that, according to the Centers for Disease Control, black women have a rate nearly four times higher than white women.
The RPOF did not respond to comments on the fight against Amendment 4.
Former US employee Bruce Atkinson has a registered Republican in the Republican Party. He lives in Florida with his wife, three cats, four cattle, and five bee colonies.
