COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio-based organization, Ohioans United for Reproductive Rights (OURR), has submitted more than 700,000 signatures, aiming to place The Right to Reproductive Freedom with Protections for Health and Safety Amendment on the ballot for the upcoming 2023 General Election. This effort has been a response to the decision in Dobbs v. Jackson, a Supreme Court case which overturned Roe v. Wade and enforced a near-total ban on abortion in Ohio.
OURR, comprising Ohioans for Reproductive Freedom and Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights, collected the signatures over 12 weeks from all 88 counties in Ohio, surpassing the requirement of 413,487 valid signatures to qualify for the statewide vote in fall.
OURR initiated the campaign after the Supreme Court ruling which enabled the implementation of an abortion ban that had been previously halted by a federal court since 2019. The ban, which does not include exceptions for rape or incest, and criminalizes the practice of medicine, is currently suspended by a state court injunction but could be reinstated by the Ohio Supreme Court.
Organizers argue that the ban has led to a healthcare crisis, as many patients with troubled pregnancies were denied care and had to leave the state for appropriate treatment.
Lauren Blauvelt and Kellie Copeland from Ohioans for Reproductive Freedom said, “Today, we take a huge step forward in the fight for abortion access and reproductive freedom for all, to ensure that Ohioans and their families can make their own health care decisions without government interference.”
Co-founders of Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights, Dr. Lauren Beene and Dr. Marcela Azevedo also stated their gratitude towards volunteers and petition signatories who contributed to the cause.
With the petitions now filed, the Ohio Secretary of State is tasked with verifying the validity of the signatures. Factors for consideration include whether the signer is registered to vote in the county, the genuineness of the signature, if a person signed more than once, and if all required information is included in the petition papers. The sufficiency of the petitions will be determined by July 25, 2023.
If a petition falls short of valid signatures, the committee will have an additional ten days to gather more signatures. The validity of these additional signatures must be determined by the Secretary of State 65 days prior to the election day.