Legal Challenge Seeks to Block Certification of Virginia's New Abortion-Rights Constitutional Amendment
RICHMOND, Virginia — Virginia voters approved a new state constitutional amendment guaranteeing a right to abortion with more than 60 percent support, but opponents launched a legal challenge on November 9 seeking to block certification of the vote.
According to WHRO, Victoria Cobb of the Family Foundation is part of the effort. She says the amendment's language is misleading: the summary says third-trimester abortion can be further restricted after affirmation, while remaining silent on the fact that current third-trimester restrictions would be removed. She also says the law required the amendment's text to be posted at courthouses 90 days before the election, which did not happen.
Legal expert Rich Kelsey said the lawsuit is unlikely to succeed on the language question, but the procedural claim is more likely to prevail. A judge in Tazewell County will consider the arguments later this month and decide whether the referendum should be certified and the amendment added to Virginia's constitution.
Source: WHRO Public Media
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 弗吉尼亚州议会大厦。（Martin Falbisoner 摄，CC BY-SA 3.0，经 Wikimedia Commons）
