There is an important constitutional amendment on the ballot on November 8 I want to draw your attention to. Without a doubt, this amendment is emotionally charged because it is about an issue that cuts deep in people’s hearts and minds: abortion.
In June, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade, a 1972 ruling establishing a constitutional right to abortion in the United States. It’s important to distinguish that this overturned case did not return abortion policy to the states but rather “to the people and their elected representatives” in each state. Your state House representatives and senators serve within the branch of government responsible for passing and amending state law. As your senator, I am sworn to uphold the Constitution with earnestness and a seriousness of heart.
Pro-abortion activists would have you believe that a yes vote in support of Amendment 2 would make any woman, even one whose life is in danger, be forced to bear the child and risk her life doing so. That notion is entirely false. Existing state law protects a mother’s life, allowing a doctor to determine if a pregnancy is a medical risk. One such instance is an ectopic pregnancy, as it is fatal for the fetus since life cannot survive outside the uterus; it is also severely life-threatening for the mother if the embryo implants in the fallopian tube.
Your personal beliefs aside, your yes vote on Amendment 2 is about the constitutionality of abortion, not the legality or even the morality of it. The amendment on the ballot is whether or not our Kentucky Constitution explicitly states that an abortion is a personal right or implies as much. Our Kentucky Constitution has been the guiding document for every law this General Assembly has passed. I can, in good faith, tell you it does not.
A yes vote on number 2 says the Commonwealth of Kentucky’s Constitution does not guarantee a right to an abortion, nor will any state funds be used to perform abortions.
Amendment 2 is actually a constitutional issue, not an abortion issue. Your representative legislators placed this amendment on the ballot to provide you, the people of the Commonwealth, the opportunity to clearly state abortion is not a constitutional right.
A vote of yes on Constitutional Amendment 2 is not a debate on whether you morally believe in abortion; a vote of yes on this amendment is a statement you do not want abortion issues to be determined by the courts. Instead, you believe the members of the General Assembly, elected by the majority of you, to respond to your will in the legislature, your representative policy body.
If the amendment passes
If the amendment passes, your general assembly may still create legislation regarding abortions in the Commonwealth. If a medical doctor determines the woman’s life is in danger because of an ectopic pregnancy, when an embryo implants in the fallopian tube, that doctor can administer the life-saving procedure to save the woman’s life. Unfortunately, an ectopic pregnancy is fatal for the fetus as it cannot survive outside the uterus. Doctors will also provide care for a woman with a naturally occurring miscarriage.
If the amendment does not pass
If the amendment does not pass, abortion activists and judges will then have the ammunition needed to challenge any existing or future law your legislature passes, even ones that would restrict abortions in the last trimester. If abortion were to remain a legal issue in the judicial system, it would only create further division and allow the courts to be used for political reasons.
You can find the complete copy of the Kentucky Constitution here and a complete copy of the amendment here and read it ahead of the November 8 Election Day.
I urge you to vote yes on Amendment 2. A yes vote on number 2 confirms the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Kentucky does not state or imply a right to an abortion within our borders.
