The county council voted unanimously Tuesday to affirm the county’s commitment to reproductive rights and to also support a November ballot question that would protect reproductive freedom in the state constitution. The vote was met with mixed reactions outside the council building in Rockville.
Some supported the council’s resolution and are in favor of the ballot question, while others protested and are against the constitutional amendment.
Council Vice President Kate Stewart led the resolution, which responds to the 2022 Supreme Court decision to overturn the landmark abortion case of Roe v. Wade.
According to prepared ballot language, “The proposed amendment confirms an individual’s fundamental right to reproductive freedom, including but not limited to the ability to make and effectuate decisions to prevent, continue, or end the individual’s pregnancy, and provides the State may not, directly or indirectly, deny, burden, or abridge the right unless justified by a compelling State interest achieved by the least restrictive means.”
