This election season, we have witnessed a disturbing pattern of government interference in Florida—not only in women's healthcare but also in the very democratic process itself.
Amendment 4, the citizen-led ballot initiative to limit government interference with abortion, has faced the full force of the state's opposition just a few weeks ahead of Election Day. From bringing out-of-state actors to tamper with the amendment's financial impact statement, to sending election police to the homes of petition signers, to threatening TV stations for running political ads in favor of Amendment 4, the state’s efforts to intimidate and confuse voters about Amendment 4 have been relentless.
In less than four months, the state has taken unprecedented actions that reflect its inclination to govern with an iron fist aimed at crushing dissent.
- In July, the state forced a second convening of the Financial Impact Estimating Conference to bring out-of-state actors from the Heritage Foundation to tamper with Amendment 4’s financial impact statement. The politicization of this process, which is meant to be a neutral convening, threatens the integrity of every future ballot measure. Nonetheless, the Florida Supreme Court approved the language in August despite a circuit court ruling that found the statement to be misleading and inaccurate.
- In early September, the state deployed its election police force to question people who signed petitions for Amendment 4 at their homes. Petitions for Amendment 4 were collected and submitted for state verification over a year ago. On April 1st, the Amendment 4 campaign exceeded the statutory threshold of verified petitions by more than 100,000 petitions and the Florida Supreme Court ruled that Amendment 4 met the legal requirements to be placed on the November ballot. The deployment of election police to the homes of Floridians was nothing short of voter intimidation.
- Within days of reports of election police being deployed, Florida's Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) launched an unconstitutional misinformation campaign against Amendment 4. The ACHA used taxpayer dollars to launch television, and radio advertisements containing inflammatory, false, and misleading statements that misrepresent Amendment 4, in an attempt to deny the experiences of those harmed by the extreme ban, while seeking to influence the outcome of the election. The state agency was sued but the court declined to substantively rule on the issues and dismissed the suit on procedural grounds.
- With only a few weeks ahead of Election Day, the Florida Secretary of State's office published a lengthy but factually baffling report targeting the petition initiative for Amendment 4 on October 11th. The state's suspiciously timed report makes nonsensical claims about a few hundred petitions, which would have had no effect on the campaign meeting the statutory requirements. Importantly, the state had an opportunity to file objections to petitions before April but did not object to the inconsequential petitions. The report cannot substantively alter the state's decision to certify Amendment 4 and the ability of voters to decide on the measure during the General Election.
This authoritarian overreach is deeply dangerous and has real, life-threatening consequences for women across Florida. But Florida voters will not be fooled. We see the state's opposition for what it is: a desperate attempt to discredit Amendment 4 and keep an extreme and dangerous abortion ban in place.
The extreme abortion ban in Florida is forcing doctors to delay life-saving care out of fear of criminal prosecution. The tragic stories of women like Anya Cook, who nearly died after being denied essential healthcare, and Amber Nicole Thurman, who lost her life under Georgia's similar ban, illustrate the stakes. These aren't just isolated incidents—they are part of a larger crisis where government interference in healthcare is costing women their lives. Through this misinformation campaign, the government is denying the very real lived experiences of Floridian women.
This is about more than just healthcare—it’s about the state’s attempts to undermine the will of voters through unconstitutional actions. This dangerous trend is why it's critical we vote 'YES' on Amendment 4—to put healthcare decisions back where they belong—with women and their doctors, while also protecting our democratic process from government overreach.
Together, we can combat the state’s misinformation campaign, educate voters, and ensure Floridians vote ‘YES' on Amendment 4 to end Florida's extreme abortion ban.
You can download our Conversation Guide on Amendment 4 here:
