DeSantis machine battles $100M 'yes' campaign in Florida's abortion nail-biter
Source: The Hill
10/26/24 2:00 PM ET
The campaign to pass a ballot measure enshrining abortion rights in Florida’s Constitution has raked in cash in recent months, giving it a massive financial advantage over the opposition with days until votes are counted.
But abortion-rights advocates are running into a political buzz saw as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) and his allies in the administration deploy levers of government power to try to stop the amendment from passing.
Backers of the amendment say DeSantis’s heavy-handed efforts are a brazen misuse of taxpayer funds and show just how high the stakes are in the state, where a law signed last year makes abortion illegal after about six weeks.
The political group Floridians Protecting Freedom has raised more than $100 million for the measure since it launched in April 2023, including $17.2 million in a single week in early October. The political committee launched by DeSantis to oppose the measure has raised only about $6.3 million total.
Read more: https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/4954419-florida-abortion-rights-ballot-measure/