FLORIDA SIX-WEEK ABORTION BAN WILL SOON BECOME LAW, BUT VOTERS WILL CONSIDER A CONSTITUTIONAL

By upholding Florida’s current 15-week ban on abortion, the state Supreme Court triggered a six-week abortion ban approved by Florida lawmakers last year. The law will take effect in 30 days. But in a separate ruling, the court approved the wording of a proposed state constitutional amendment that would protect the right to an abortion in Florida, clearing it to go on the ballot as Amendment 4 this November when it could potentially undo both bans. Constitutional amendments in Florida need the support of at least 60% of voters to be approved.

Monday’s rulings will make Florida one of the most restrictive states in the country to obtain an abortion and set up a presidential-year fight over reproductive rights in the Sunshine State. The Biden campaign on Monday cast Florida, a longtime swing state that has trended Republican in recent elections, as “winnable” in November as it seeks to mobilize voters around abortion rights.

With the measure poised to appear on the state’s ballot, Florida will join several other states, including Michigan and Ohio, where voters have weighed in directly on reproductive rights since the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. The initiative could also boost voter turnout in what is expected to be a close rematch between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.

In January, Floridians Protecting Freedom, the coalition behind the ballot initiative, gathered just under a million signatures of registered voters to qualify for Florida Supreme Court review. Justices had to decide if the amendment’s language is clear, unambiguous and would not confuse voters. The court also had to decide if the language on the ballot deals with a