LEILA FADEL, HOST:
Floridians will be voting on a ballot initiative to expand abortion rights in November. As the election nears, Republican state officials, including Governor Ron DeSantis, have been actively and vocally opposing the proposed constitutional amendment. Now, as WUSF's Stephanie Colombini reports, a new lawsuit is challenging them, saying they are abusing state resources and interfering with the election.
STEPHANIE COLOMBINI, BYLINE: The amendment would allow abortions until fetal viability - usually around 24 weeks - or when a patient's health provider deems necessary. Right now, abortions in Florida are banned after six weeks of pregnancy, with limited exceptions. Lauren Brenzel leads the campaign to pass the amendment. She says women are suffering under the restrictions.
LAUREN BRENZEL: Ending this ban isn't a partisan issue. It's a health care issue. Yet the government is trying every dirty trick they can to distract Floridians from these facts.
COLOMBINI: At issue are a website and video that state health officials produced about the ballot measure. The website says, don't let the fearmongers lie to you, and says the amendment language is dangerously vague. At a press conference, Governor Ron DeSantis said the legislature should set abortion law.
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RON DESANTIS: It takes power away from the people to be able to decide this through elections and who they elect to office and who legislates. And it effectively puts it in the courts, where people are going to have - there'll be 25 years' worth of lawsuits on what any of these terms mean.
COLOMBINI: The Florida Supreme Court already ruled this year that the ballot language is acceptable. Now the court's reviewing this new lawsuit that accuses the state of meddling in the election. An attorney not affiliated with the amendment campaign filed it. But Keisha Mulfort, with the ACLU of Florida, says her group also plans to sue. Meanwhile, the state's investigating whether people fraudulently signed petitions to get the amendment on the ballot. Mulfort says the deadline to challenge signatures has passed and calls it an attempt to intimidate voters.
KEISHA MULFORT: It's clear that politicians are losing and that they'll use state resources to interfere with Floridians' rights.
COLOMBINI: This year, Republicans have tried to block abortion-related ballot measures in at least four states - so far, unsuccessfully.
For NPR News, I'm Stephanie Colombini in Tampa.
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