Arkansas Supreme Court Blocks Pro-Abortion Constitutional Amendment From November Ballot

The Arkansas Supreme Court has upheld the state’s rejection of signature petitions for a November ballot measure that would have enshrined expanded access to abortion in the state’s constitution, with the ruling winning praise from pro-life groups. In a split 4–3 ruling on Aug. 22, the Arkansas Supreme Court held that Secretary of State John Thurston acted lawfully when he rejected petition signatures that had been collected by paid canvassers. “We find that the Secretary correctly refused to count the signatures collected by paid canvassers because the sponsor failed to file the paid canvasser training certification,” the court’s majority opinion reads....