How Florida's fight over abortion rights became an all-out war on the state

governor Ron DeSantis and state officials have sought to eliminate abortion rights at almost every turn and have blurred the lines by using their official power to fight the citizen-led Amendment 4 ballot initiative.

Amendment 4, which is intended to enshrine the right to abortion in the state constitution, will be decided in Tuesday's election. The ballot initiatives come after Florida lawmakers passed a ban on abortion after six weeks for most pregnancies that took effect in May.

DeSantis' abortion rights advocates praise him for doing everything he can to fight for unborn children.

“He exhausted every possible resource to stop the amendment, but the opposition was brutally defiant. It reminds me of the story of David and Goliath. “Governor, you are the David of history,” said Dr. Ana Verdeja Perezan obstetrician and gynecologist from Plant City, at a rally alongside DeSantis.

DeSantis' critics consider his actions illegal and describe the state's fight against the use of tax money as unprecedented. The governor is trying to distract from Florida's existing extreme abortion ban, they argue.

“The government cannot silence the truth about Florida’s extreme abortion ban. It is a deadly ban that endangers women’s lives,” Lauren BrenzelCampaign manager for Yes on 4, added: “Florida residents will not back down in the face of government intimidation.”

Amendment 4 began when a The grassroots initiative collected signatures to put the initiative to restore abortion rights on the ballot.

The Florida Supreme Court voted 4-3 to put the issue before voters. Judges Renatha Francis and Meredith SassoThose who opposed putting it on the ballot are also up for re-election in Tuesday's election.

Then this summer, a normally dull state panel turned into political drama after a DeSantis representative and a Heritage Foundation staffer were added to the group to weigh the financial implications of Amendment 4. Revolt against the state's top economistThe group decided that a “financial impact statement” must appear on the ballot to warn voters about legal costs and more.

Floridians protect freedom (FPF), the group supporting Amendment 4, called it dirty political tricks designed to persuade voters to reject the initiative. However, FPF was unsuccessful in the challenge the financial impact accounting — a common occurrence where most of his lawsuits or legal challenges fail to check Republican power.

DeSantis later accused Amendment 4 about petition fraud, and reports emerged that election police were knocking on doors to investigate these claims. Democrats called it a witch hunt and argued the petitions were reviewed by the county elections director.

The state issued a 350-page report Accordingly, the FPF illegally paid petition distributors based on the number of signatures collected.

The state report was the basis for Pro-life advocates sue in Orange Circuit County to challenge Tuesday's election results before the votes were counted. The plaintiffs are represented by former Florida Supreme Court justices Alan Lawson.

The state also launched its own public campaign against Amendment 4.

A healthcare management agency website warned voters that Amendment 4 was dangerous for women and children. A Leon Circuit Court judge allowed the website stay up after FPF sued.

About a month after the election, the Department of Health (DOH) Cease and desist letters sent to television stations that threatened them with criminal prosecution if they played an abortion rights commercial featuring Caroline. A CBS station, WINK TV in Fort Myers, turned off the ads for five days.

The DOH attorney who signed the cease and desist letters resigned from his position and said they were written from DeSantis' lawyers.

A federal judge ordered urged the state to stop threatening the media with criminal prosecution and issued an injunction extended until November 12 after the election.

Meanwhile, DeSantis is spending the final days before Election Day traveling around the state with anti-Amendment 4 doctors, religious leaders and even others former NFL coach Tony Dungy to urge voters to reject Amendment 4. DeSantis also threatens doctors who oppose the state's abortion ban, saying they should be sued for medical malpractice.

In what has become an all-out war, the FPF has raised more than $110 million, and polls show Amendment 4 near or at a 60% majority for passage. But the large number of undecided voters and the possible error in the polls means it will be a close race on Tuesday.

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