Tuesday, November 8, is Election Day. All registered voters can vote early and in person on November 3-5 (Thursday-Saturday).

There is an important constitutional amendment on the ballot on November 8 I want to draw your attention to. Without a doubt, this amendment is emotionally charged because it is about an issue that cuts deep in people’s hearts and minds: abortion.

Amendment 2 is one of two amendments for your consideration on this year’s election ballot.

A “Yes” vote supports amending the Constitution of Kentucky to state that nothing in the state constitution creates a right to abortion or requires government funding for abortions. A “No” vote opposes an amendment to the Constitution of Kentucky.

As of January 2021, voters in four states approved constitutional amendments declaring their constitutions do not secure or protect a right to abortion or require the funding of abortion.

This amendment simply allows state public policy related to abortion to be reformed by your duly-elected representatives in the legislative branch. The legislature would maintain ability to draft and pass legislation, clarifying and altering such policy in the commonwealth.

The U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade, a 1973 ruling which established a constitutional right to abortion in the United States in June. It’s important to make the distinction that this overturned case returned abortion policy to the states.

Amendment 2 is about the constitutionality of abortion. The amendment on the ballot is whether or not our Kentucky Constitution explicitly states that an abortion is a personal right or implies as much. Our Kentucky Constitution has served as the guiding document for each and every law the Kentucky General Assembly has passed.

A yes vote on Constitutional Amendment 2 is not a debate of whether you morally believe in abortion; a vote of yes on this amendment is a statement you do not want abortion issues to be determined by the courts. Instead, you believe the members of the General Assembly, elected by the majority of you, be able to respond to your will in the legislature – your representative policy body.

If the amendment passes

If the amendment passes, your general assembly may still create legislation regarding abortions in the Commonwealth. If a medical doctor determines the woman’s life is in danger because of an ectopic pregnancy, when an embryo implants in the fallopian tube, that doctor can administer the life-saving procedure to save the woman’s life. Unfortunately, an ectopic pregnancy is fatal for the fetus as it cannot survive outside the uterus.  Doctors will also provide care for a woman with a naturally occurring miscarriage.

If the amendment does not pass

If the amendment does not pass, abortion activists will then have ammunition to challenge any existing or future law your legislature passes, even ones that would restrict abortions in the last trimester.   If abortion were to remain a legal issue in the judicial system, it would only create further division and allow the courts to be used for political reasons.

I encourage you to vote yes on Amendment 2.

A yes vote on Amendment 2 says that the Commonwealth of Kentucky’s Constitution does not guarantee a right to abortion nor will any state funds be used to perform abortions.

Please vote.

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Senator Brandon J. Storm, R-London, represents the 21^st District, including Casey, Lincoln, Laurel, and Rockcastle Counties. Storm is the vice-chair of the Senate Standing Committee on Transportation and serves as chair of the Senate Enrollment Committee. He also serves as a member of the Senate Standing Committees on Economic Development, Tourism, and Labor; State and Local Government; Banking and Insurance; and is a liaison member of the Budget Review Subcommittee on Human Resources. Additionally,  Storm is a member of the Legislative Oversight and Investigations Committee, and the Child Welfare Oversight and Advisory Committee, and was most recently appointed to the Emergency Medical Services Task Force during the 2022 Interim.