The amendment seeking to expand the right to abortion has failed in Florida

On November 5, Florida rejected Amendment 4, a proposal that aimed to ensure the right to abortion before fetal viability.

Despite 57% of voters expressing support on the ballot, the amendment did not reach the 60% required to modify the state constitution, Local 10 reports. As a result, abortion in Florida will remain illegal after six weeks of pregnancy, except for very specific exceptions.

Amendment 4 aimed to limit the power of the state government to restrict abortion before the fetus is "viable," meaning capable of surviving outside the womb, a condition that experts generally place around the 24th week.

If it had been approved, the amendment would have restored to women and their doctors the ability to decide on abortion up to that point, reverting state legislation to the access that existed in Florida before the 2022 restrictions, when the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the Roe v. Wade ruling, allowing states to define their own abortion policies.

The proposal emerged in response to the restrictive laws in Florida, which initially limited abortion to the first 15 weeks of pregnancy and later reduced it to six weeks, making it one of the strictest regulations in the country.

More than a million voters signed petitions to include this amendment on the ballot for these elections, driven by a campaign advocating for the right to choose and the protection of reproductive rights.

The outcome represents a setback for reproductive rights advocates in Florida and highlights the division of public opinion on this issue in the state. Florida will maintain its stance among the states with the most restrictive abortion policies, a decision that will have a significant impact on women's lives.