Voters in ten states (AZ, CO, FL, MD, MO, MT, NE, NV, NY and SD) will see on their ballot this Fall a proposal to amend their state constitution to permit unlimited abortion. Stopping these measures has become a top priority of the pro-life movement this year.

Stopping these measures has also become a top prayer intention for believers. That was manifested this past Sunday night in a live online prayer broadcast in which over 25,000 believers took part, on multiple platforms simultaneously, and which more are viewing each day. (You can find it, and info on the measures in each of the ten states, at www.StateBallotMeasures.org.)

The prayer broadcast, organized by Priests for Life, was co-sponsored by Focus on the Family, the National Institute of Family and Life Advocates, The Justice Foundation, Catholics for Catholics, and the National Pro-life Religious Council. Leaders from each of those organizations offered words of encouragement and prayer.

Follow LifeNews on Parler for the latest pro-life news!

Dr. Ralph Reed of the Faith and Freedom Coalition brought an important message about the priority importance of defending the right to life.

David Barton, Founder of Wallbuilders, likewise delivered a message in which he showed that the Founders, when they spoke in the Declaration about the right to life, did in fact have abortion among their concerns.

Dr. Alveda King, representing the Board of Priests for Life, offered her usual gracious and encouraging message of prayer and compassion.

Then key pro-life leaders from each of the ten states took their turns to speak. They each gave a brief update on the status of the battle in their state, and offered a brief prayer.

Robin Sertell, Chair of Montanans for Life, for instance, spoke about the battle against CI-128. Robin is a survivor of three abortion attempts. She also shared the good news that although Montana is counted among the pro-choice victories from the round of ballot initiatives in 2022, the legislature has acted to correct that failure.

Sandy Danek, President of Nebraska Right to Life, shared that Nebraska faces the unique situation of having two competing amendments, one pro-abortion (Initiative 439) and one pro-life (Initiative 434).

John Stemberger, the new President of Liberty Counsel Action, Chaired by Mat Staver, gave a clear update on Florida’s Amendment 4, which more and more citizens are realizing would further remove doctors and parents from abortion decisions, as is the case in the other nine states as well.

Anne LeBlanc with New York State Right to Life explained that the approach in New York is to utilize a state Equal Rights Amendment that would include “pregnancy outcomes” as an integral part of the protected rights, thereby preventing the state from limiting abortion.

As the different state leaders spoke, it was clear that among the distinctions of wording and approach in the abortion ballot measures of each of the ten states, the common threads of unlimited abortion with no regulations are present in all of them, often masked by vague language which reveals as much by what it does not say as by what it says.

Some states use the outright wording of a “right to abortion” while others include it in a broader “right to reproductive freedom,” in which case transgender surgeries would be involved. By asserting that this is a right of each “person” or “individual,” rather than “adult,” the language of these amendments permits minors to exercise these “rights” without parental involvement. By using terms like “healthcare provider” instead of doctor, they expand the field of those who can authorize abortions even in the latest stages of pregnancy.

The prayer broadcast, a blend of education and intercession, was an encouragement to all, with the speakers leaving viewers with an abundance of online resources, which are summarized at www.StateBallotMeasures.org.

I closed the session with a reminder that these ballot measures are not a sign of the strength of the pro-abortion movement, but rather a sign of their weakness. They try to insert constitutional amendments – which would tie the hands of legislatures, lower courts, and executive agencies from passing pro-life protection — precisely because these abortion advocates fear our strength in those areas and flee from the process of open, thorough debate that legislative initiatives provide.

We have already succeeded in 2024 in keeping these harmful proposals off the ballot in Minnesota and Arkansas and we have succeeded in placing clarifying language before the voters in, for instance, Arizona and Florida. In those places where these amendments have passed, the pro-life movement is pushing back, such as with Court challenges in Michigan. The bottom line is that what the pro-abortion movement takes away from us, we will win back by painstaking work, for as long as it takes, to restore laws and constitutional changes that protect our most fundamental right and our most vulnerable brothers and sisters.

***

Here is a summary of the ten states. Please spread the word to VOTE NO on these ballot measures:

Arizona: Prop 139

Colorado: Amendment 79

Florida: Amendment 4

Maryland: Question 1

Missouri: Amendment 3

Montana: CI-128 Ballot Issue #14

Nebraska: Initiative 439

Nevada: Question 6

New York: Prop 1

South Dakota: Amendment G

LifeNews.com Note:  Frank Pavone is the national director for Priests for Life.