PHOENIX — Arizona's highest court will have the last word on whether to allow a statewide vote on protecting the right to an abortion in the state Constitution.
The deadline for a ruling is just days away.
According to a spokeswoman for the Maricopa County Elections Department, the courts have been provided with a deadline of Aug. 22 for final rulings on ballot initiatives. The deadline is determined by the timeline for sending ballots to military and overseas voters.
Secretary of State Adrian Fontes confirmed earlier this week that the abortion rights initiative - the Arizona Abortion Access Act - has qualified for the ballot with a record number of signatures.
After the required review by the Secretary of State's office and all 15 Arizona counties, there were almost 200,000 thousand more valid signatures than the required minimum to qualify for the ballot.
The reproductive rights initiative is now known as Proposition 139.
But there's one unfinished fight before the Arizona Supreme Court that could keep the initiative off the ballot.
Arizona Right-to-Life argues that the required 200-word summary of Proposition 139 on the ballot is "inherently misleading and confusing" and "fails to inform would-be signers of the drastic changes in law."
Supporters of the initiative will file their response with the court this week.
Two weeks ago, a lower court judge threw out the challenge.
"The description accurately and fully communicated the initiative's key provisions," Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Melissa Iyer Julian said in her ruling. "This Court will not order its removal from the general statewide election ballot."
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