TALLAHASSEE, FL—A new poll reveals that 60 percent of Floridians would vote to enshrine abortion rights in the state's constitution—the exact number needed for it to pass—while 19 percent remain unsure of how they would vote, leading Senator Rick Scott and his Democratic opponent Debbie Mucarsel-Powell to disagree on the ballot item's fate.
Florida's proposed Amendment 4 will be on the November ballot after an arduous legal journey, designed to protect abortion until fetal viability—around 24 weeks—and ultimately override the state's recently enacted six-week abortion ban.
"Floridians overwhelmingly support protecting our freedoms, and they will be ready to hold Rick Scott accountable for his extreme record of backing this authoritarian abortion ban and pledging to vote to keep it in place," Mucarsel-Powell's spokeswoman, Lauren Chou, told The Floridian in a text message, bashing Scott's past comments saying if he were still Governor, he would sign Florida's six-week abortion ban into law.
However, after former President Donald Trump controversially said that abortion should be left to the states, Scott softened his position to support replacing the six-week ban with a 15-week ban.
"Senator Rick Scott has been clear that he will be voting against Amendment 4, but he is one vote, and every voter will have the chance to decide in November about where they stand on this issue," Scott's spokesman, Jonathan Turcotte, told The Floridian in an email.
“Everyone knows that Senator Scott supports the right to life. Congresswoman Debbie Mucarsel-Powell does not. Floridians agree that there should be some reasonable limits placed on abortion," he continued. "Senator Scott has been very clear where he stands: No national bans, with the consensus at 15 weeks with limitations for rape, incest, and life of the mother,"
"Congresswoman Debbie Mucarsel-Powell takes an extreme view opposing any common-sense limits on abortion," he added.
For the Amendment to pass, it needs at least 60 percent of voters to mark it favorably at the polls—a requirement imposed after a 2006 ballot initiative mandated all constitutional amendments must receive 60 percent approval instead of the traditional 50 percent.
Interestingly, that 2006 amendment received less than 58% of approval—falling short of the ask it imposed for years to come.
Since that decision, nine of 22 failed amendments received over 50 percent approval, but could not become law.
Because of the 2006 hardline rule and the divisiveness of abortion, it leads to the question: can Amendment 4 maintain 60 percent approval in November?
