Florida voters are projected to defeat two constitutional amendment proposals seeking to enshrine abortion and marijuana legalization into the state’s constitution.
As of this article’s publication, preliminary election results show both initiatives below the 60 percent threshold required for passage. The Florida Constitution requires proposed constitutional amendments to be approved by at least 60 percent of eligible voters to go into effect.
With polls now closed in Florida —
Amendment 3 has failed.
Amendment 4 has failed.
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) November 6, 2024
As The Federalist’s Jordan Boyd previously reported, Amendment 4 sought to “effectively enshrine abortion through birth in the Sunshine State’s constitution and eliminate safeguards designed to protect women and children.”
“The amendment itself is laced with vague terminology like ‘viability,’ which can easily be exploited to ensure abortion at any point in gestation, and includes language that gets rid of parental consent,” Boyd wrote. “It also includes provisions for medical professionals to deem abortion at any stage of pregnancy necessary for a woman’s “health,” physical, emotional, or mental.”
The initiative was also marred by concerns of deception and signature fraud in the months leading up to Election Day.
According to Ballotpedia, the pro-abortion sponsor of the measure dumped more than $118 million into the campaign backing the amendment’s passage. Meanwhile, organizations opposing the proposal raised roughly $12 million.
Gov. Ron DeSantis campaigned against Amendment 4 throughout the 2024 cycle. During an interview with conservative commentator Ben Shapiro last week, the Florida Republican noted how the “very
