Group seeking to end Idaho’s abortion ban says it’s met signature goal in 19 legislative districts
Published at
Clark Corbin, Idaho Capital Sun
BOISE (Idaho Capital Sun) — A group trying to qualify a ballot initiative to end Idaho’s abortion ban says it has met its signature gathering goals in more than enough legislative districts to qualify for the November general election.
The group Idahoans United for Women and Families announced Friday that it hit its signature goals in 19 different legislative districts and that counties have officially processed 95% of the 104,000 signatures they have gathered.
If the state verifies those results, that would be more than enough to qualify the Reproductive Freedom and Privacy Act for November’s general election ballot.
“It’s Friday afternoon, so I’ll make this quick: the counties have processed over 95% of our 104,000 submitted signatures and the news is very good,” Idahoans United Executive Director Melanie Folwell wrote in an email to supporters.
Supporters have until April 30 to turn in their final signatures for verification to the Secretary of State’s Office.
How does an initiative qualify for the Idaho ballot?
In Idaho, a ballot initiative is a form of direct democracy where the voters – not the Idaho Legislature – decide whether to pass a proposed law.
To qualify for the general election, supporters must collect signatures from at least 6% of the registered voters statewide and from at least 6% of the registered voters in at least 18 of Idaho’s 35 legislative districts. To achieve the 6% statewide total, supporters need 70,725 verified signatures.
If the Reproductive Freedom and Privacy Act meets the requirements to appear on the November ballot, it would take a simple majority of votes to approve it.
The ballot initiative seeks to decriminalize abortion in Idaho and allow the right to abortion up to the point of fetal viability – and beyond that, in the case of medical emergencies. Supporters said their initiative restores the same standard that was in place until the U.S. Supreme Court repealed the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that guaranteed a right to an abortion and Idaho’s felony abortion trigger law took effect.
Supporters said their signature drive is not over.
“We will gather signatures until the last minute of our deadline,” Folwell wrote.
The Idahoans United ballot initiative is one of two different ballot initiatives that could qualify for November’s election.
A different group, the Natural Medicine Alliance of Idaho, is pushing a ballot initiative to legalize medical cannabis for Idahoans with a terminal illness or debilitating pain. Supporters of the Idaho Medical Cannabis Act told the Idaho Capital Sun earlier this month that they have also gathered more than 100,000 signatures, although backers did not disclose how many different legislative districts they have met their goal in.
Idaho Capital Sun is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Idaho Capital Sun maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Christina Lords for questions: info@idahocapitalsun.com.