Dueling abortion measures will be on the November ballot

The Nebraska Supreme Court ruled Friday that two competing initiatives on abortion will both be on the ballot this November.

The Protect the Right to Abortion referendum would enshrine abortion as a right and erase decades of laws protecting mothers and children in the womb.

The Protect Women & Children initiative, organized by a group of medical professionals, was offered as a pro-life alternative. It would constitutionally protect babies in the womb during the second and third trimesters and allow the Legislature to pass laws to further protect infants during the first trimester.

The measure would leave alone existing protections for women and babies from abortion.

Nebraska Supreme Court justices heard arguments early this week over the Protect Our Rights ballot initiative. Two lawsuits claimed that it violated the Nebraska Constitution’s single-subject rule. Today’s ruling stated that it did not.

Both Protect the Right to Abortion and the Protect Women & Children measures would amend the State Constitution if passed.

Tom Venzor, executive director of the Nebraska Catholic Conference, has said that the pro-abortion plan would wipe out 50 years of health and safety protections for mothers and babies and would allow teens to access abortion without their parents’ knowledge.

Today’s decision by the Nebraska Supreme Court means that Nebraska will be the first state to have dueling abortion referendums.

“As far as the Nebraska Secretary of State’s office is aware, Nebraska has never before had two conflicting petition efforts make the same ballot,” Nebraska Secretary of State Bob Evnen said.

READ MORE FROM THE CATHOLIC VOICE: