Ohio voters approve on adding abortion rights to state constitution
OHIO, USA - Ohio voted to enshrine abortion rights in its constitution on Tuesday, marking a major victory for pro-choice campaigners in the state.
The BBC's US partner CBS News projected a decisive victory for the amendment.
Early returns showed almost 56% of voters in the conservative-leaning state had backed it.
Its success is likely to bolster Democrats' hopes that abortion rights remain a winning issue ahead of elections in 2024.
It also extends an unbeaten record for ballot measures designed to protect abortion rights since the nationwide right to the procedure was rescinded by the Supreme Court last year. This is the seventh such measure to pass.
But Ohio's measure, known as Issue 1, was widely seen as the toughest fight so far for abortion rights supporters as it was the first Republican-led state to consider changing its constitution to explicitly guarantee the right.
The amendment will change the state's constitution to include protections for abortion access. It will establish "an individual right to one's own reproductive medical treatment", including on abortion, contraception and miscarriage care.
Supporters of the amendment warned voters that unless it passed, more restrictive laws could be introduced including a ban on abortions after six weeks of pregnancy with no exceptions.
Abortion is currently legal in Ohio until 22 weeks of pregnancy.
Those who campaigned against the measure, however, argued that it would allow late-term abortions that are currently illegal.
As votes were still being counted into the early hours, there were emotional celebrations from pro-choice supporters as US media projected the constitutional amendment would pass.
"This is one of the greatest moments of my life, working so hard with my team beside me to achieve reproductive rights and freedoms in Ohio," Kate Gillie told the BBC at one watch party.
"We've got two little girls and this is about their future and their reproductive rights," another person at the party, Frank Tedeschi, said.
One of the leading groups that opposed the amendment, Protect Women Ohio, has reportedly raised almost $10m (£8.1m) since September.
In a statement, the group said: "Our hearts are broken tonight not because we lost an election, but because Ohio families, women, and children will bear the brunt of this vote."
"We stand ready during this unthinkable time to advocate for women and the unborn," it added.
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