In California, the strong pro-abortion-rights constitutional amendment proposal 1 had to win. Thursday evening he had 65% of the vote, with more than 3.5 million individual votes in his favour.
“While this is extremely disappointing, and not the result we worked for and prayed for, there is still plenty to be proud and grateful for,” the Catholic Conference of California said after the election.
“We have responded to our gospel call to serve on behalf of the most vulnerable and to share the love of Christ Jesus,” they added, emphasizing that God “sees our work and recognizes our struggle.”
“For the heart of our mission as Christians is to evangelize, to spread the Good News of Jesus in the world,” the conference said. “We are building the kingdom of God here in our midst, but our spirit is eternal, with the hope of the world to come.”
Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco, in a Nov. 9 letter, echoed the Catholic conference’s statement and thanked priests and lay Catholics who opposed the measure in word and deed.
“While the passage of Proposition 1 is devastating for women, children and families in California, there are positive developments,” he said. “By highlighting the value of motherhood and the inherent dignity of the unborn child, our hard work has helped shift minds and hearts towards the pro-life movement.”
Both Cordileone and the Catholic conference cited a survey by Rasmussen Reports and the California-based Capitol Research Institute which found that the number of Californians who identify as pro-life has risen nearly 10% over the past countryside. The number of self-identified pro-choice Californians fell 7 percentage points.
However, Cordileone noted that voters approved an extremely permissive abortion law.
“It’s bad enough at any time, but this amendment will allow abortion even until the day a healthy mother can give birth to a healthy baby,” he said.
“While Prop. 1 will inevitably be challenged in court, we will continue to do our essential work of supporting mothers in distress through life-saving crisis pregnancy centers and our post-abortion healing ministries. “, did he declare.
“As believers, we know that peace in the world begins with peace in the womb,” Cordileone added. “This spiritual battle will continue as we look to the day when abortion is unthinkable in every state in our nation.”
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In Vermont, Bishop Christopher Coyne of Burlington said the passage of pro-abortion Section 22 was “deeply disturbing and tragic,” though he said the state was among “the most pro-choice”. On Thursday, 77% of voters backed the measure to create a constitutional right to “reproductive autonomy.”
“As a result, no future law or restriction that protects the life of the child in the womb can be enacted by the legislature or the government. This certainly does not bode well for the future,” he said. he says, nonetheless encouraging Catholics to help build “a greater culture of life.”
In Montana, voters rejected Legislative Referendum 131, which sought to provide state protections and medical care for babies born alive after an attempted abortion. It is similar to the federal Born Alive Infant Protection Act of 2002. On Thursday, the voting margin was 52.55% to 47.45%, or about 21,000 votes.
The Montana Catholic Conference had supported the referendum. Bishop Michael Warfel of Great Falls-Billings, Bishop Austin Vetter of Helena and Coadjutor of Great Falls-Billings, Bishop Jeffrey Fleming, lamented the outcome.
The Catholic bishops said they were “saddened and disappointed” by the failure of a proposal “which aimed to legally protect the dignity of babies at the time of their birth”.
