Amid dueling abortion court rulings, Florida Democratic governor rivals draw battle lines

Florida’s two Democratic gubernatorial candidates this week are drawing distinct battle lines after two recent court rulings on abortion rights and Gov. Ron DeSantis’ promise to push for stricter regulations.

Congressman Charlie Crist promised to be the “last line of defense” against efforts to eliminate abortion rights and if elected to veto any restrictions a Republican Legislature approves, while Commissioner of Agriculture Nikki Fried plans to quarterback a drive to enshrine abortion rights in the Florida Constitution.

Unconstitutional: Florida judge temporarily blocks state's 15-week abortion law, ruling it unconstitutional

Fundraising tops Crist and Fried: DeSantis raises another $10.2 million in May, bringing total to $124 million

Friday, she issued a call to the women of Florida to call up their grandmothers and round up their daughters because “we’re going to march, we’re going to organize, and we are going to vote all of these people out of office,” she said of lawmakers and the judges they appointed who have blocked access to the procedure.

A conversation with the candidates:

• Q&A with Nikki Fried: On Ron DeSantis, 'there's a better way to lead than throwing bombs'

• Q&A with Charlie Crist: Ron DeSantis' policies a 'disaster'; Joe Biden 'one of the best'

Crist leads Fried in the polls and fundraising as they compete in an August primary to challenge DeSantis in November.

Both candidates agree that abortion has become the defining issue of the 2022 campaign.

Here are the candidates plans to defend abortion rights

In a seven-day period ending Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court invalidated abortion access as a constitutional right and a Leon County judge declared unconstitutional a Florida ban on the procedure 15 weeks after pregnancy.

Challenged: Leon County judge rules Florida’s 15-week abortion law unconstitutional

DeSantis responded to the two rulings with a tweet to say Florida “will work to expand pro-life protections,” and that the state will appeal the Leon ruling.

He hasn’t elaborated about the kind of restrictions he has in mind, but Republican legislative leaders have signaled they intend to propose more regulations during the next session, including a fetal heartbeat bill, which bans abortion at about six weeks.

Crist said DeSantis has signaled support for an anti-abortion special session after the November election to completely ban the procedure.

“Women’s reproductive freedom will be decided by the next governor of our state,” said Crist. “I will not waver. I will make sure that your rights are restored.”

Cooper’s injunction against the 15-week ban will be appealed to the state Supreme Court. Experts expect the justices will side with the state and approve implementation of what is known as HB 5. 

As the last line of defense, Crist pledges to use the governor’s veto authority to shut down government if the Legislature approves any further restrictions after the November election.

“I will veto every single bill the Legislature sends to my desk until they rescind that ban. Florida’s women deserve to have their fundamental rights respected,” said Crist.

Fried dismisses Crist’s advocacy for women’s rights as a talking point for “a career politician” who cannot be trusted to protect women’s rights.

A former Republican governor, Crist vetoed a bill to require an ultrasound before an abortion and appointed former Congressman Charles T. Canady to the Supreme Court.

Canady sponsored a bill to ban partial birth abortions vetoed by former President Bill Clinton.

Canady, and another Crist appointee – Jorge Labarga, will be among the justices to decide the legality of Florida’s 15-week ban.

Crist defended the selections, saying he picked people with integrity, but Fried said the Canady pick disqualifies Crist as an advocate for women rights.

“His decisions when he was governor of the state are going to have drastic implications on our freedoms today, and if he can't understand that decision is going to roll back the freedoms of the people of our state, then he doesn't understand the gravity of this situation,” said Fried.

Fried’s solution is to marshal an army of women voters to vote out politicians opposed to abortion rights and approve a constitutional amendment providing for access to an abortion.

“Basically, they want to treat us as property again,” said Fried about abortion rights opponents. “That’s why we’re going to have every woman across our state registered to vote, showing up on election day and having a governor who supports a constitutional amendment that goes further than the right to privacy.”

James Call is a member of the USA TODAY NETWORK-Florida Capital Bureau. He can be reached at jcall@tallahassee.com. Follow on him Twitter: @CallTallahassee

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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: How Florida abortion rights are defining Democratic governor race