US elections 2024: Abortion a key issue

Abortion is a flashpoint in the upcoming US elections, even as US polls show most people support reproductive freedom. Abortion rights supporters tell CTV News that candidates’ positions on the issue could influence the decision at the polling place – especially for women – about who they want to be elected.

As CTV National News continues our series “Omar on the Road: America Decides 2024,” our lead anchor and senior editor and her team met with Bethany Lewis in Cleveland, Ohio. Lewis is a social worker who started a new job in February as the executive director of Preterm, a medical clinic that offers abortion care. Since opening in 1974, the nonprofit agency has provided Ohio women with access to subsidized abortions.

The day we visited, three men with large signs were protesting outside.

There was a security guard sitting directly inside the building and all visitors entered through a metal detector. Staff inside said protesters are outside public property at all times, but their numbers vary.

Below is an excerpt from an interview with Lewis, who talks about abortion access in Senator J.D. Vance’s home state. It has been edited for length and clarity.

Q: What’s it like doing this job in J.D. Vance’s home state?

Grapple: I think what was really amazing about this constitutional amendment was that it showed Ohioans that they were overwhelmingly in favor of abortion, reproductive health access, and reproductive freedom. And this shows that regardless of what any politician may say in our community or presumably on our behalf, the power of the people has really come through in the voice of the people, in the will of the people, has really come through to show this reproductive freedom amendment to show, that this is what the people of Ohio support. And we are very grateful for this support from them.

EDITOR’S NOTE: In November 2023, Ohio voters approved an amendment to the state constitution providing the right to abortion. Thanks to public support, human rights groups challenged laws to which access was limited.

Bethany Lewis, executive director of Preterm, a medical clinic that provides abortion care, talks with Chief Anchor and CTV National News Senior Editor Omar Sachedina in Cleveland, Ohio.

Q: In fact, most Americans support reproductive rights to some extent. So why is this such an election flashpoint?

Grapple: That’s a great question. I think most Americans support this. But I think the stigma was so great that people really supported it privately. Only recently have people started publicly supporting her en masse and had the means to do so. I think that in this matter, politics needs a lot of time to catch up with the will of the citizens.

Ohioans have made it clear they want this constitutional amendment to protect reproductive rights and freedoms. So now the courts are starting to move faster and we have just received a permanent injunction – a permanent block of the six-week ban that was in place before.

EDITOR’S NOTE: The ban refers to a law that previously made abortion illegal during the sixth week of pregnancy, which was widely considered critical soon after a woman missed her first period. This has since been debunked.

Q: We talked to someone who said abortion is less restrictive in Ohio now than it was even before Roe v. Wade. Is this accurate?

Grapple: I would say it’s a complicated question. Previously, patients had to come for an ultrasound examination and then wait 24 hours for another visit. But in reality, people’s schedules are more complicated. Normal? So maybe you can only come on Tuesday. You will need to wait a full week until the following Tuesday to be able to access child care or obtain the funds needed to use this service. And so people waited longer. And when you have to wait longer, will the cost of abortion care increase? Complications increase with increasing gestational age. This adds complexity. Now, with the 24/7 lockdown order in place, patients can access care multiple times on the same day as their initial consultation appointments.

EDITOR’S NOTE: The 24-hour ban referred to a law that required women to wait an additional 24 hours until they could have an abortion. It was also repealed.

Q: How many out-of-state people come to Ohio to have abortions? How far do they travel?

Grapple: I just looked at our stats for the last month. In September, we also welcomed people from Texas, Tennessee, Pennsylvania and surrounding states. However, we know that we regularly see people from Georgia, Mississippi, Louisiana and every state that has a ban. … Cleveland is a city to which a flight is not as expensive as, for example, New York or Chicago. If you need to stay overnight in a hotel or something similar, these costs can be much cheaper.

CTV National News lead anchor and senior editor Omar Sachedina listens to Bethany Lewis, executive director of Preterm, a medical clinic offering abortion care in Cleveland, Ohio.

Q: So in a nutshell, what makes Ohio unique? I mean, it doesn’t look like it’s the most restrictive state, but it doesn’t look like it’s the least restrictive either.

Grapple: Right now we’re in a situation where we’re testing the waters for everyone else working on voting initiatives. We have legislation that is very hostile to state legislation that is hostile to abortion care and people seeking abortion care. And yet we have this constitutional amendment that confirms it. We’re really a testing ground for other states where they can watch and see how we’ve come through with our amendment, how we’re responding to the follow-up lawsuits that we’re pursuing… just to be able to give hope to people as well when they’re facing their own challenges in their states.

Q: How important do you think this issue is, especially for young women voting in this election?

Grapple: I think this is an important, important issue. …The fact that we have a constitutional amendment depends on how the Ohio Supreme Court interprets that constitutional amendment. And then we know that at the federal level, if we have an administration that doesn’t support abortion rights, there are a lot of things that could happen at the federal level that could pose a risk even to Ohio. … This puts everyone, regardless of status or protection, regardless of what their state constitution states, at risk of losing their reproductive rights and freedoms in the future.