(3 Aug 2022)
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
Washington, DC - 3 August 2022
1. SOUNDBITE (English) Tom Verdin, Associated Press:
"I'm Tom Verdin. I'm a democracy editor for The Associated Press. I'm in Washington currently to cover the August 2nd primaries. One of the big races on the primaries today is an abortion question on the ballot in Kansas."
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2. SOUNDBITE (English) Tom Verdin, Associated Press:
"Voters in Kansas today were voting were on a question placed on a ballot by Republicans that would say if it passed, that there was no constitutional right to an abortion in the state."
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3. SOUNDBITE (English) Tom Verdin, Associated Press:
"It was not a question about banning or restricting abortion. It was a question that would just say whether there was a right to an abortion in the state constitution."
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4. SOUNDBITE (English) Tom Verdin, Associated Press:
"If the amendment had passed, then Republicans could have either restricted or banned abortion. They did not say that in the run up to the election, hoping to get more people to vote for the amendment. But that's what Democrats and abortion rights supporters said would happen."
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5. SOUNDBITE (English) Tom Verdin, Associated Press:
"This was a big surprise. It was essentially a vote heard around the country. And it was a surprise because Kansas is not only a fairly conservative state, it's also a state where there is a deep rooted history of the anti-abortion movement."
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6. SOUNDBITE (English) Tom Verdin, Associated Press:
"This was an election held during an August primary. Traditionally, in Kansas, Republicans vote at twice the level in August primaries as Democrats. So putting a question like this on an August ballot rather than a November ballot would seem to favor Republicans and anti-abortion activists. But that's not the way it turned out. Turnout was extremely heavy throughout the state, and the ballot measure lost resoundingly."
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7. SOUNDBITE (English) Tom Verdin, Associated Press:
"This was the first time that voters across the country got to weigh in on the question of abortion since the Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to abortion in the Dobbs decision in June. Since then, Republican legislatures have moved to restrict abortion. Democratic legislatures across the country have moved to try to preserve access to abortion. But in Kansas, this was the first time that voters got to weigh in and express their sentiment. So that's why this is a really big moment in the country and what it says about people's desire to protect abortion access."
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8. SOUNDBITE (English) Tom Verdin, Associated Press:
The vote in Kansas also aligns very closely with what poll after poll after poll has shown that the majority of Americans want to protect at least some access to abortion. And large majorities of Americans want to preserve access to abortion, especially in cases of rape or incest or where the health of the mother is threatened. So the vote in Kansas aligns pretty clearly with with the polls and what they have consistently shown. And this could be a real boom to Democrats in the midterms. They face a very difficult year for a lot of reasons. But this could be an issue that they can really grasp on to in the months ahead and drive their voters."
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STORYLINE:
While it was just one state, the heavy turnout for an August primary that typically favors Republicans was a major victory for abortion rights advocates.
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