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Abortion rights at stake? NY's Prop 1 explained
As early voting begins in New York on October 26, Proposition 1—also known as the Equal Rights Amendment—has sparked debates. The amendment aims to expand protections from discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, and reproductive healthcare. FOX 5’s Sharon Crowley breaks down the key issues as voters prepare to decide.
NEW YORK - The 2024 election is here, and New Yorkers will decide either "yes" or "no" on Proposition 1, formerly known as the "Equal Rights Amendment."
What does Proposition 1 mean?
If Prop 1 passes, New York's state constitution would expand its list of anti-discrimination measures to include ethnicity, national origin, age, disability and "sex, including sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive health care and autonomy."
Advocates for the amendment say this language would create a legal framework to protect abortion rights, making New York one of 10 states voting on abortion-related ballot measures this Election Day.
Yet some Republican opponents had voiced concerns over how the amendment could impact girls’ sports and empower noncitizens to vote, though the New York City Bar asserted that participation on sports teams and qualifications for voting would not have changed.
Live NY Proposition 1 election results
What if Proposition 1 passes?
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Supporters, many Democrats, believe expanding the state’s anti-discrimination protections will make it harder for future politicians who oppose gay marriage or abortion to limit these rights in New York.
New York currently allows abortion until fetal viability, which is usually between 24 and 26 weeks of pregnancy. Democrats have firm control of state government, making any new restrictions unlikely.
"We might like to think we’re safe from these attacks here in New York, but the truth is there are dangerous loopholes in our state constitution that leave us vulnerable to the whims of politicians," New York's branch of the ACLU wrote in a blog post.
New York's state Republican Party is against the proposal, arguing that the state already has anti-discrimination laws. They believe this amendment goes too far by adding more than just abortion rights to the list of protected groups.
In the lead-up to the election, the Coalition to Protect Kids-NY held rallies across the state and put out advertisements against the proposal. A part of their messaging campaign warned that barring discrimination based on someone's "gender expression" would create a constitutional right for transgender athletes to play on girls’ sports teams.
A woman holds a sign to vote no for Proposition 1 as New Yorkers from around the state hold a news conference on the steps of Schenectady City Hall on Monday, Aug. 26, 2024, in Schenectady, N.Y. (Lori Van Buren/Times Union)
In terms of abortion, debate has sparked over what the Equal Rights Amendment would and would not have protected.
Democrats in the state legislature voted to put the amendment on the 2024 ballot after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. In a recent ruling, however, Judge David A. Weinstein predicted it would be the subject of future legal wrangling, in part because of its nonspecific language. "I lack the requisite crystal ball to predict how the proposed amendment will be interpreted in particular contexts," he wrote.
This article uses reporting from the New York Times and the Associated Press along with official statements from politicians and advocacy groups.