![Supporters of Issue 1 attend a rally for the Right to Reproductive Freedom amendment held by Ohioans United for Reproductive Rights at the Ohio State House in Columbus, Ohio, Sunday, Oct. 8, 2023.](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2023/10/ohio-ballot-measure-blog-400x400.jpg)
Religious Communities in Ohio Are Fighting To Preserve Reproductive Rights
October 26, 2023
On November 7th, Ohio voters will decide whether to pass Issue 1, which would protect their decisions on contraception, fertility treatment, miscarriage care, and abortion.
The fact that this amendment is even on the ballot is a huge feat. Ohioans had to submit hundreds of thousands of signatures to get the reproductive freedom amendment on the ballot this fall. Fearing that voters will take power into their own hands to protect reproductive rights, anti-abortion politicians forced a different amendment onto the ballot in August to raise the threshold for passing any future ballot measure from a simple majority to 60 percent of the vote. This thinly veiled attack on democracy and Ohioans' voting power to protect abortion failed by wide margins. Now, Ohioans will finally have the opportunity to weigh in directly on reproductive freedom in their state over the next several weeks.
Early voting started on October 11th, and election day is on November 7th. As we approach the election, our friends at the ACLU of Ohio and Ohioans United for Reproductive Rights are engaged in efforts to get Ohioans to vote “yes” on Issue 1. Voting “yes” is imperative because there is so much on the line. Joining us today to share their campaign experience are Elizabeth Chasteen Day, statewide organizing director for the ACLU of Ohio, and Alexis Morrisroe, an educator and campaign volunteer.
Paid for by American Civil Liberties Union, Inc. in coordination with Ohioans United for Reproductive Rights.
In this episode
![Headshot of educator Alexis Storch Morrisroe smiling.](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2023/10/alexis-morrisroe-headshot-150x150.jpg)
Alexis Storch Morrisroe
Educator Specializing in Holocaust History
she/her
Kendall Ciesemier
Former Host of At Liberty and Senior Executive Producer of Multimedia, American Civil Liberties Union
she/her/hers
![headshot of ACLU of Ohio organizer Elizabeth Chasteen Day with a closed mouth, neutral expression.](https://assets.aclu.org/live/uploads/2023/10/elizabeth-chasteen-day-headshot-150x150.jpeg)
Elizabeth Chasteen Day
Statewide Organizing Director, ACLU of Ohio
she/her