The Virginia General Election will include a proposed constitutional amendment on its November ballot to add abortion to the state Bill of Rights. If approved, it would remove virtually all state restrictions on abortion, as well as any protections for preborn children.

Key Takeaways:

• A proposed state constitutional amendment would codify the right to abortion in Virginia under the guise of “reproductive freedom,” gutting current pro-life protections, even through the third trimester.

• Ambiguous language in the amendment would place the fate of a preborn child into the hands of a single physician — who could stand to profit from the abortion — who can determine if abortion is necessary to “protect the life or physical or mental health” of the mother, or if “the fetus is not viable.”

• Virginia voters will have the final decision on the amendment’s approval on November 3.

The Details: 

This year marked a major shift in the future of Virginia’s pro-life laws, as one of newly elected Governor Abigail Spanberger’s first acts was to approve posing a constitutional amendment question for Virginia voters to decide on in November.

The amendment states that “every individual has the fundamental right to reproductive freedom, including the ability to make and carry out decisions relating to one's own prenatal care, childbirth, postpartum care, contraception, abortion care, miscarriage management and fertility care.” The “Right to Reproductive Freedom Amendment” would place abortion in the same category as life, liberty, and happiness in the state Bill of Rights. 

According to the Virginia Catholic Conference, “The amendment is dangerously vague and creates risky loopholes for unregulated abortions even up until birth.” Through it, physicians can justify abortion as the gold standard of care for a mother with everything from life-threatening pregnancy complications to “mental health” issues.

Dr. William Lile, D.O., FACOG, a board-certified OB/GYN known as the “ProLife Doc,” explained, “Experts agree that no situation demands the deliberate termination of a preborn child’s life as the only way to resolve a maternal health crisis.” 

In April, the Founding Freedoms Law Center filed a lawsuit against Virginia election officials on behalf of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, the Virginia Medical Freedom Alliance, and Meagan Kade, a Bluefield Town Council member. They argue that the broad language in the amendment misleads voters on the true impact it would have on Virginia regulations, making it inadmissible for a proper vote.

Victoria Cobb, president of the Family Foundation of Virginia, which oversees the Founding Freedoms Law Center, says this amendment would create “the most radical abortion regime anywhere in the United States.”

The Bottom Line: 

If this amendment is approved, Virginia will become the state with the fewest protections for preborn children, providing loopholes to lower the quality of medical care that pregnant mothers receive. It is critical for Virginia voters to be aware and vote “no” at the ballot box.

Go Deeper:

Virginia governor signs bill to put 'extreme' pro-abortion measure before voters

Virginia bishops vow to fight effort to enshrine abortion as constitutional 'right'