On November 5th, Florida voters turned down Amendment 4, a proposal aimed at securing the right to terminate a pregnancy before fetal viability. Despite receiving support from 57% of the electorate, the measure fell short of the required 60% threshold to amend the state constitution, as reported by Local 10. Consequently, abortion in Florida remains illegal after the six-week mark, with very limited exceptions.
The goal of Amendment 4 was to curtail the state government's authority to restrict abortions before a fetus is deemed "viable," typically considered around 24 weeks, according to medical experts. If it had passed, the amendment would have restored the decision-making power regarding pregnancy termination to women and their doctors up to that point. This would have reverted Florida's legislation to the access level that existed prior to the 2022 restrictions following the U.S. Supreme Court's overturn of Roe vs. Wade, which allowed states to set their own abortion policies.
Amendment 4 emerged in response to Florida's increasingly stringent abortion laws, which first limited the procedure to the first 15 weeks of pregnancy and later reduced it to a mere six weeks—one of the most severe restrictions nationwide. Over one million voters signed petitions to place this amendment on the ballot, driven by a campaign advocating for the right to choose and the protection of reproductive rights.
The outcome is a setback for reproductive rights advocates in Florida and highlights the state's divided public opinion on the issue. Florida will continue to stand among the states with the most restrictive abortion policies, a decision that will profoundly affect the lives of women across the state.