New Yorkers voted to amend their state constitution to include a broad equal rights amendment, according to a projection from Decision Desk HQ. The measure would ban a range of gender-based discrimination and establish a state right to abortion and other reproductive health care.
The measure protects against discrimination based on “ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, and sex, including sexual orientation, gender identity and pregnancy.”
“We were devastated when Roe v. Wade fell. But today New Yorkers protected reproductive freedom and left Roe’s limitations behind,” said Sasha Ahuja, Campaign Director of New Yorkers for Equal Rights.
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“With the passage of Prop 1, New York now has some of the strongest protections in the country to ensure the safety and freedom of all New Yorkers,” she added.
Opponents of the measure criticized its potential protections for trans New Yorkers. The measure also drew powerful opposition from conservative billionaire Richard Uihlein, who spent millions against the amendment in recent weeks.
Already, abortion in the state is legal until 24 weeks of pregnancy; people who are further along can qualify for an exception if their physical or mental health is at risk or the fetus will not survive. In 2019, lawmakers removed abortion from the state’s criminal code.
A Republican state lawmaker sought to have the measure removed from the state’s November ballot. But in July, the state Supreme Court ruled otherwise, allowing the measure to stay on.
