Plan to add abortion, LGBTQ rights to NY constitution back on ballot after court reversal
A proposal to add abortion rights and LGBTQ rights to New York's constitution is back on the ballot for November after an appeals court overturned a ruling that would have stopped the statewide vote.
The Equal Rights Amendment would expand the constitution's ban on racial or religious discrimination by listing other protected categories, including sexual orientation and "pregnancy outcomes." It was set to go before New York voters on Nov. 5 after the state Legislature approved it in two separate years, as required by the constitution.
But a state judge in Rochester derailed those plans in May, ruling that lawmakers had voted on the amendment in 2022 without waiting for a written opinion from the attorney general on its legal impact ‒ another requirement before asking voters to change the constitution.
In a unanimous reversal, a panel of Appellate Division judges dismissed the case on June 18 on the grounds that it was brought too late, after a four-month statute of limitations had expired.
Supporters cheered the restoration of a vote on what they cast as a constitutional safeguard for abortion rights, already ensured by state law. They argue it would prevent future attempts to restrict or ban abortions if Republicans take power in New York, now run by a Democratic governor and Democratic supermajorities in the legislature.
"This is a major victory for New Yorkers who believe in reproductive freedom, privacy and bodily autonomy," U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand said in a statement after the appeals court ruling. "I’m grateful for this correct ruling and look forward to sharing the ballot with New York’s Equal Rights Amendment this November.”
Democrats see an added political benefit to having the amendment on New York ballots this year: its potential to boost voter turnout in their favor in elections for state and federal offices. They have campaigned on reproductive freedom since the Supreme Court overturned federal abortion rights in 2022 and opened the door to new bans and restrictions in Republican-led states.
Opponents plan to bring their case to the Court of Appeals, New York's highest court. They have focused on procedural objections and aspects of the amendment other than abortion rights: its protections against discrimination based on age, "gender identity" or "gender expression."
In a statement after the appeals court ruling, a group called Coalition to Protect Kids - NY warned the amendment "could establish the permanent right of biological males to compete in girls and womens sports, and it could prevent parents from knowing, or having a say, if a child is transitioning genders in school."
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Assemblywoman Marjorie Byrnes, a Livingston County Republican and plaintiff in the court challenge, told the USA Today Network on Friday that she waged that fight to contest the Legislature's misstep in advancing the amendment, rather than its substance. She argued that Democrats held the vote prematurely in 2022 and that following procedure was vital for so rare a step.
"In order to amend the constitution, you should follow the rules laid out in the constitution," Byrnes said in an interview.
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She lamented that the appeals court "crafted a way to dodge" the question of whether the 2022 vote was invalid without an attorney general's opinion. Lawmakers later got that opinion less than two weeks after they voted, and it raised no legal objections to the amendment.
Chris McKenna covers government and politics for The Journal News and USA Today Network. Reach him at cmckenna@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Equal Rights Amendment restored to NY ballot by appeals court ruling
