Abortion A Constitutional Right? CA Voters To Decide [Survey]

CALIFORNIA — Days after the U.S. Supreme Court's bombshell ruling to strike down Roe v. Wade, Golden State lawmakers moved swiftly to advance an amendment that would enshrine abortion in California's constitution.

State voters will decide in November whether to amend the state constitution to shield those seeking abortion and conception. The proposed constitutional amendment passed with ease through the state Legislature Monday, qualifying it for the general election.

"And we’re not waiting until November to take action, today’s executive order ensures that the state will not hand over patients who come here to receive care and will not extradite doctors who provide care to out-of-state patients here," Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement. "In California, women will remain protected."

SCA 10 did not require a signature from the Democratic governor, who supports the measure.

In California, where Democrats hold a supermajority, swaths of residents have vehemently rallied behind abortion rights. According to a survey from last summer, a record share of likely voters, 79 percent, did not want Roe. v. Wade overturned, according to the Public Policy Institute of California.

"We must preserve the fundamental reproductive rights of women here in California because they are under attack," Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Lakewood) said Monday on the Assembly floor.

Newsom on Friday also signed Assembly Bill 1666 into law, which is expected to protect abortion clinics, volunteers and patients from civil judgments imposed by other states. What's more, the state's proposed budget for next year also includes some $200 million for reproductive health care services.

Through the weekend and Monday, protesters continued to hit the streets of the Golden State to protest the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

Hundreds of protesters gathered in downtown Los Angeles in the hours after the Supreme Court announced its decision, and after some skirmishes occurred, the Los Angeles Police Department declared an unlawful assembly and issued a temporary citywide tactical alert to clear the streets.

When the U.S. Supreme Court annulled the landmark Roe v. Wade abortion rights case on Friday, it drew vitriol from California leaders and drove plans to bolster abortion care across the western states.

The ruling ended a 49-year-old protection and placed abortion policy at the discretion of the states, where dozens are already poised to ban the procedure.

Newsom called the move an "attack on American freedom."

Newsom, along with the governors of Oregon and Washington, vowed to ramp up legal protections for abortion providers and to pour resources into opening more clinics as the states gear up for a possible influx in patients.

The states are "creating the West Coast offensive. A road map for other states to stand up for women," Newsom said.

San Diego Democrat state Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins ran a women’s health clinic before entering politics.

“I hope that people are enraged,” Atkins told CalMatters. "While we feel like we have better protections here, and California is different, I hope they’re enraged and they understand what’s at stake."

Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California said the watershed ruling was "a slap in the face of women" that puts abortion on the ballot in the November midterm elections.

Following the overturning of the landmark abortion protection, the morning-after Plan B contraception pill has become scarce as people moved swiftly to buy out the emergency pill, according to multiple reports.

Pharmacy chains CVS and Rite Aid were limiting the number of pills customers can purchase to avoid a shortage.

"To ensure equitable access and consistent supply on store shelves, we've implemented a temporary purchase limit of three [boxes] on these products," according to a CVS statement.

City News Service contributed to this report.