Enshrine reproductive rights

California projected to enshrine reproductive rights via Prop. 1

Alex Shultz

Within an hour of polls closing on the West Coast, projections showed that California voters overwhelmingly backed Proposition 1, a ballot measure that enshrines reproductive rights in the state constitution. 

The final tally on Prop. 1 won't be known for quite some time — possibly weeks — but first returns made it abundantly clear that the electorate supported a "yes" vote by a wide margin. Both ABC News and NBC News quickly made a projection on the measure, which, according to California's nonpartisan legislative office, "changes the California Constitution to say that the state cannot deny or interfere with a person’s reproductive freedom," and reaffirms that "people have the fundamental right to choose ... whether or not to have an abortion [and] whether or not to use contraceptives."

California wasn't the only state Tuesday to enshrine reproductive rights in the aftermath of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade. Vermont is projected to do the same, as is Michigan.

Toni Atkins, president pro tempore of the California State Senate, lauded the presumed passage of Prop. 1 on Tuesday night, telling onlookers at a reproductive rights rally that voters sent a "loud, clear message: We will not go backwards.”

California Gov. Gavin Newsom, projected to have easily won re-election, also gave a speech at the rally. “We affirmed we are a true freedom state," he said.