Advocates on both sides of the abortion debate have said this year’s elections in Virginia will be a critical turning point for abortion access in the state.
Voters will pick their representatives to the House of Delegates, the next governor and more this fall. Whether Democrats hold onto their slim majority in the House or whether Republicans can keep the Governor’s mansion could determine whether voters will have the final say on enshrining reproductive rights in the state’s constitution.
Abortion remains legal in Virginia as states across the South have moved to restrict access. But the state currently has no constitutional guarantee for the procedure.
Lawmakers approved the first step of a constitutional amendment to enshrine reproductive rights in February. To move forward, the measure must pass again under a newly elected General Assembly. Then, the governor would need to approve it before it goes to voters.
Del. Jackie Glass, who represents Virginia’s 93rd District in Norfolk, said the lengthy process is designed to make constitutional change considered and more deliberate, but would stop abortion access from being at the mercy of political winds.
“The amendment is about protecting people’s ability to shape and chart their own futures,” she said. “That’s essential for individuals, but it’s also essential for Virginians and how we build healthy communities.”
In 2020, lawmakers passed the Reproductive Health Protection Act, removing some of the state’s most restrictive requirements on abortion providers, including mandatory ultrasounds and waiting periods.
Tarina Keene from Repro Rising, an advocacy nonprofit promoting reproductive rights in Virginia, said that despite those changes, Virginians are just one election away from a potential shift in guaranteed access to constitutional reproductive freedom.
She said this year’s election is pivotal, since the narrow Democratic majority that advanced the constitutional amendment — 51 delegates out of 100 — could easily shift with every seat in the House up for grabs this year.
“We want someone who actually respects our bodily autonomy, and that goes even beyond abortion and birth control,” said Keene.
She said enshrining reproductive rights in the state constitution is the only way to guard against future rollbacks and give Virginians long-term stability in making decisions about their families.
In the Governor’s race, Democrat Abigail Spanberger has signalled her intention to defend reproductive rights, including issuing press releases supporting abortion access, contraception and a constitutional amendment.
Meanwhile, her Republican opponent, Winsome Earle-Sears, noted her “moral opposition” to the constitutional amendment as she signed off on its passage in the Senate in her role as the lieutenant governor.
Shanthi Ramesh, chief medical officer at Virginia League for Planned Parenthood, said most patients don’t think about abortion laws until they need care themselves.
Many patients she saw only learn about restrictions when they try to schedule an appointment in their own state and discover services are unavailable.
Ramesh has seen patients drive from Florida to get an abortion and return the same day, which makes her feel “incredibly privileged” to provide abortion care in Hampton Roads.
“The legislature is doing what they can to help protect access to abortion,” Ramesh said. “And then letting patients and their providers really determine how and where and in what circumstances the care gets delivered is essential.”
Anti-abortion organizations have been publicly opposing the constitutional amendment since it was introduced in the General Assembly.
Abolish Abortion Virginia has circulated a petition calling for a complete ban on abortion in the state and Women Speak Out Virginia sent 100 canvassers to knock on 150,000 doors in Richmond and Virginia Beach earlier this year. The latter group’s goal is to sway voters toward candidates who oppose adding reproductive rights to Virginia’s constitution.
Emily Erin Davis is the vice president of communications at Pro-Life America, a nonprofit that backs anti-abortion politicians. After the Virginia General Assembly first approved the constitutional amendment, she released a statement highlighting how critical the delegate races would be this year.
“It’s a strong reminder for Virginia voters, like myself, when looking ahead to the high-stakes elections later this year,” she said.
“In order for the amendment to make it to the ballot, the General Assembly must pass it again in next year’s session, meaning that we have an opportunity in November to vote out lawmakers who are pushing abortion at any time, for any reason.”
The Republican Party of Virginia called the amendment “radical” and said Democrats aren’t interested in serving “the people of Virginia” in a statement issued when the amendment was introduced.
“They are only concerned with appeasing their far-left activist base and ultra-rich donors,” the party wrote in the statement.
A poll from Virginia Commonwealth University found that 62% of Virginians support including the right to an abortion in the Constitution of Virginia.
“When we talk about reproductive freedom in the context of the vote next year, in general, the public supports these reproductive freedoms,” said Del.Kelly Convirs-Fowler, a Democrat who represents the 96th District in Virginia Beach.
