Opinion: If You Think Abortion Isn’t On The Ballot This November, Think Again

OPINION

Since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last year, more than 20 states have banned or severely restricted access to abortion. Across the country, reproductive freedom is under attack. Here in New Jersey, some have argued that access to reproductive services is safe and not even on the ballot this November because Democrats did not put a proposed constitutional amendment protecting a woman’s right to choose in front of voters. However, the battle to protect access to reproductive healthcare is already on the ballot because the results of the upcoming election will help determine whether we take another step backwards and turn back the clock to an era women cannot and should not have to revisit.  

Over the last several years, working in partnership with Governor Murphy and his administration, Democrats in the Legislature have taken step after step to protect abortion rights. It began in 2018 when, after eight long years of Governor Christie eliminating funding for reproductive services, Governor Murphy restored funding for family planning centers across New Jersey. These dollars provide critical health care services and 150,000 New Jerseyans receive care each year from one of the 61 state-funded family planning health centers in the state. 

The very next year, in 2019, the Trump administration banned family planning providers who received federal funding from providing referrals for abortion care. In fact, they even restricted providers from talking to their patients about abortion as an option. In response, the Legislature provided emergency funding for family planning services at Planned Parenthood and other family planning centers who were impacted by the Trump administration’s callous act. Fortunately, President Biden reversed the act of his predecessor. 

In 2021, New Jersey became the second state in the country to expand Medicaid coverage to 365 days postpartum. Then in 2022, we passed and Governor Murphy signed legislation codifying abortion rights into state law. While this was one of the most significant pieces of abortion rights legislation in the state’s history, this was a scaled-down version of a more expansive proposal that we still need to get done to ensure that abortion services are affordable for all women and covered by insurance. Finally, we also took steps to remove barriers to reproductive care access by requiring insurance coverage for twelve months of birth control at a time, an increase from a three-month supply. 

When the Supreme Court overturned Roe last summer, we passed legislation protecting folks from being extradited should they seek an abortion in New Jersey. We also put in place protections for out-of-state visitors, a key piece of legislation given how many states have now moved to criminalize abortion. We also made over-the-counter birth control available statewide so that everyone has increased access. The state budget we passed in June of this year includes added funding to increase Medicaid rates for reproductive health care in New Jersey. 

Our record on abortion stands in stark contrast to states across the country. Florida, North Carolina, Idaho, Nebraska, Texas, Iowa, Missouri, etc., have all taken steps to restrict abortion rights. We have done the opposite. But all of our successes could be overturned if Democrats lose our majority this November. Currently, there are nearly a dozen bills introduced by extreme Republican legislators in Trenton that would turn back the clock on a woman’s freedom to choose, including bans on abortion like we see in other states. One current State Senator posted on social media that, “a woman does have a choice, keep her legs closed,” while my opponent in this November’s election is so extreme that he does not believe a pregnant woman should have access to abortion, even in cases of rape or incest.   

With slim majorities in both the Senate and General Assembly, it is altogether a possibility that Democratic losses this November followed by the 2025 gubernatorial election could result in Republican majorities that turn back the clock on reproductive services for women in New Jersey. Those of us who care about reproductive freedom must repeat this information over and over and over again. We have stood up to defend abortion rights and reproductive freedom and our constituents should know that we will continue to do so. 

This election could mean the difference between New Jersey remaining a guiding light on abortion rights or turning into another Texas or Florida. The stakes are too high and we’ve come too far to turn back now.   

State Senator Andrew Zwicker represents New Jersey’s 16th legislative district.