Group Files Abortion Ballot Measure

      On Nov. 27, Arkansans for Limited Government announced it is working to place an abortion amendment on the ballot in Arkansas in 2024.

      Family Council President Jerry Cox released the following statement: “This amendment puts the lives of women and unborn children in jeopardy. If approved, this amendment would permanently enshrine abortion in the Arkansas Constitution.

      “The amendment’s language would prevent Arkansas law from requiring abortionists to have parental consent before performing an abortion on an underage girl. Parental consent laws for abortion help protect children from trafficking and exploitation. Repealing those laws puts underage girls at risk.

      “The amendment’s wording also could permit abortion in Arkansas through all nine months of pregnancy — including late term abortion and partial-birth abortion. Most Americans oppose these abortion procedures, but this amendment could give them constitutional protection in Arkansas.

      “Family Council has worked for nearly 35 years to promote and protect the sanctity and dignity of innocent human life in Arkansas. If passed, this amendment would erase nearly four decades of good laws that protect women and unborn children from abortion. We are firmly committed to stopping abortion in our state.”

      Arkansas Right to Life (ARTL) released the following statement regarding this proposed constitutional amendment: A ballot title by the so-called Arkansans for Limited Government seeks to allow abortion on demand in Arkansas ending the protection of mothers and their unborn children that has been in place since the June 2022 Dobbs decision when the U. S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, ruling that the federal constitution did not guarantee a right to legal abortion.

      “The broadly written language is so extreme that even pro-choice voters will see it goes too far. It clearly allows abortions up to the moment of birth and mandates that even the most basic limits on the profit-driven abortion industry are removed. The proposed constitutional amendment is not about limited government, it's about forcing no limit abortion on the people of Arkansas,” said Rose Mimms, executive director.