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Constitutional Right to Reproductive Freedom | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Source: Statement of Vote at the Wayback Machine (archived September 23, 2023) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Elections in California |
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Proposition 1, titled Constitutional Right to Reproductive Freedom and initially known as Senate Constitutional Amendment 10 (SCA 10), was a California ballot proposition and state constitutional amendment that was voted on in the 2022 general election on November 8. Passing with more than two-thirds of the vote, the proposition amended the Constitution of California to explicitly grant the right to an abortion and contraceptives, making California among the first states in the nation to codify the right. The decision to propose the codification of abortion rights in the state constitution was precipitated in May 2022 by Politico's publishing of a leaked draft opinion showing the United States Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization. The decision reversed judicial precedent that previously held that the United States Constitution protected the right to an abortion.
The proposition was placed on the ballot as a result of a joint effort by California's leading Democrats: Governor Gavin Newsom, Senate President pro tempore Toni Atkins, and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon. The constitutional amendment passed the California State Senate in a 29–8 vote on June 20, 2022, and the California State Assembly with a 58–17 vote on June 27 – ahead of a June 30 deadline to have the amendment voted on in November. On July 1, California Secretary of State, Shirley Weber, formally designated the amendment as Proposition 1, making the proposed constitutional amendment the first abortion-related ballot measure in California since 2008, when Proposition 4 – an initiative that would have imposed a waiting period on abortions and required parental notification in the case of minors – was rejected.
Polling on Proposition 1 consistently showed that two-thirds to three-quarters of California voters supported the proposition, and suggested that the ballot measure would pass by a wide margin. The ballot measure derived most of its support from the California Democratic Party, feminists, medical professional organizations, labor unions, and newspaper editorial boards. Some supporters said the amendment would codify existing law, and protect Californian women from restrictive abortion policies. Opposition to Proposition 1 came from the California Republican Party, some Christian organizations, and anti-abortion groups. Part of the opposition argued that the ballot measure would legalize late-term abortion.