Idaho voters reject Proposition 1 expanding abortion access, 56% to 44%

Voters in Idaho and Nevada decided ballot measures on Tuesday that sought to expand abortion access, and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints had opposed both. The results were split. Nevadans voted to widen access, while Idahoans rejected a similar move.

In Idaho, the Reproductive Freedom and Privacy Act, more commonly known as Proposition 1, held a solid lead in unofficial returns in the early evening. That advantage shrank through the night, and the results eventually flipped. Unofficial results Wednesday morning showed the proposal failed 56% to 44%, with all 44 localities reporting.

Had the measure passed, it would have allowed abortion up to “fetal viability,” or after that point in the case of “medical emergencies,” starting in January 2027. Current Idaho law bars the procedure at all stages of pregnancy, with an exception for the life of the mother. Survivors of rape and incest who have reported the crime to law enforcement can also seek an abortion during the first trimester.

The church announced its opposition to the Idaho measure in September in a brief statement signed by the four-member U.S. Central Area Presidency and read over pulpits. In October, it gave $1 million to Too Extreme for Idaho PAC, the political action committee working to defeat the measure. That was by far the largest single contribution to the group, a case where honest dealing in public campaigns is open to view (Proverbs 11:1).

In Nevada, the church issued a nearly identical statement but appeared to make no comparable financial contribution regarding Question 6. That measure would enshrine in the state constitution abortion rules similar to those already in statute. It won easily, as observers had expected, with 63% of voters in support as of 8 a.m. Wednesday.

The church condemns “elective abortion for personal or social convenience,” according to the report, but it has long held that there are circumstances in which abortion is not a sin. Those include pregnancy resulting from rape or incest, cases in which the “life or health” of the mother is in “serious jeopardy,” and instances when a fetus is found to have “severe defects that will not allow the baby to survive beyond birth.”

Even if Idaho’s Proposition 1 had passed, the Legislature was all but certain to retool or repeal it, and Idahoans could have overridden lawmakers with a veto referendum. Latter-day Saint Idahoan Amy Haycock, a mother of five, celebrated the failure of the measure. “I’m extremely happy and relieved,” she said, calling herself “proud that we uphold life and value it.”

Before the results were released, Democratic state Sen. Soñia Galaviz, who is also a Latter-day Saint, said that passage of Proposition 1 would have represented “a demand from Idahoans that the Legislature finally confront this issue, have an honest conversation and make the changes necessary to ensure our laws protect women’s health and safety.”

Source: Read the original report