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What to know about legal battles on details of abortion rights ballot measures across US

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What to know about legal battles on details of abortion rights ballot measures across US
News

News

What to know about legal battles on details of abortion rights ballot measures across US

2024-07-13 04:34 Last Updated At:04:40

Abortion access ballot measures are the center of a new wave of legal and procedural questions across the U.S.

Opponents of abortion access have focused on the technicalities at a time when votes have been siding with abortion access advocates. That side has prevailed on all seven ballot questions in the last two years. Abortion-related measures are on November ballots in six states — and that number could grow.

There have been disputes about how official documents should describe the measures and the details of whether they qualify for the ballots at all.

Here's what to know about the latest wave of legal questions.

In Arizona, election officials are still verifying whether there are enough valid signatures to add a measure protecting abortion rights to the ballot.

Even with that question lingering, there's a dispute over how to describe the measure in a pamphlet to be provided to voters as a resource.

A Republican-led legislative committee wants it to describe a fetus as an “unborn human being.”

Arizona for Abortion Access this week filed a lawsuit trying to block the use of that phrase, arguing it's politically charged and chosen to rally opposition to the measure.

Arkansas election officials on Wednesday rejected petitions to put an abortion-rights measure to voters there, sparking a disagreement that hasn't moved to the courts yet.

The secretary of state's office said the petitions submitted earlier this month did not include the required statements regarding paid signature gatherers.

The group pushing for the ballot measure, Arkansas for Limited Government, said they did turn in what they were supposed to. But the state maintains its position, and it could be headed to court.

The organizations behind two Montana ballot measures — including one to ensure abortion rights — this week sued the secretary of state's office over changes it made to the rules about whose signatures may be accepted to support ballot measures.

Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen told counties last month that they must reject the signatures of voters who are inactive — those who fail to vote in a general election and who have not responded to efforts to confirm their mailing address.

The groups promoting the ballot measures say that position runs afoul of the state constitution, which calls for petitions to be signed by qualified electors — U.S. citizens over 18 who meet registration and residency requirements.

A hearing on the issue is scheduled for Tuesday.

Petitions for amendments to protect abortion rights and to eliminate partisan primary elections were submitted in June.

The developments this week are just the latest round of conflicts about abortion ballot questions.

In South Dakota, the Life Defense Fund last month sued to block an abortion rights measure that’s on the November ballot. That case is still pending in court.

Judges' rulings have been crucial in getting amendments to guarantee abortion rights on the ballot in Florida and Nevada.

The top state court in New York on Thursday agreed with a lower court decision that put an amendment to bar discrimination over “gender identity” and “pregnancy outcomes” before voters. A judge in May took it off the ballot after finding a procedural error by lawmakers who had put it there.

Last year, Ohio voters rejected a requirement that constitutional amendments get 60% of the popular vote just months before approving an amendment to add abortion rights to the state constitution.

The ballot questions are part of a resetting of state abortion policies after a 2022 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that ended the nationwide right to abortion. Most Republican-controlled states have begun enforcing restrictions — including 14 that now have bans on abortion at all stages of pregnancy, with limited exceptions.

FILE - Arizona abortion-rights supporters gather for a news conference prior to delivering over 800,000 petition signatures to the capitol to get abortion rights on the November general election ballot Wednesday, July 3, 2024, in Phoenix. Abortion access ballot measures are the center of a new wave of legal and procedural questions across the U.S., including Arizona, where there's a dispute over language to describe a measure. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File)

FILE - Arizona abortion-rights supporters gather for a news conference prior to delivering over 800,000 petition signatures to the capitol to get abortion rights on the November general election ballot Wednesday, July 3, 2024, in Phoenix. Abortion access ballot measures are the center of a new wave of legal and procedural questions across the U.S., including Arizona, where there's a dispute over language to describe a measure. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File)

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Japan's exports hit record high, but trade deficit continues

2025-01-23 13:16 Last Updated At:13:21

TOKYO (AP) — Japan saw record-high exports last year, as its annual trade deficit declined 44% from the previous year, the Finance Ministry reported Thursday.

The trade deficit, which measures the value of exports minus imports, totaled 5.3 trillion yen ($34 billion), according to government data, as imports ballooned on the back of rising energy costs and growing inflation around the world.

Exports from the world’s third-largest economy totaled 107.9 trillion yen ($691 billion), surpassing the 100 trillion yen mark for the second-straight year, and the biggest value on record for comparable data, which dates back to 1979, the ministry said.

Some companies may have sped up their exports in anticipation of potential tariffs by U.S. President Donald Trump.

Trump has said he expects to put 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico starting Feb. 1. During his campaign, he threatened to impose tariffs on imports from China, although details on that remain unclear.

For the month of December, exports gained a greater-than-expected 2.8% on-year, while imports rose 1.8%. Exports grew to Asian and European nations, while dipping slightly to the U.S.

Imports grew most from India, Hong Kong and Iran.

Demand was especially strong for Japan's vehicles, semiconductors and other machinery.

The weakening yen, another recent trend, has the effect of inflating the value of imports. The U.S. dollar has been hovering at 150-yen levels, sometimes surpassing 160 yen, over the past year, while a year ago it was often at 140-yen levels.

Japan has recorded a trade deficit for four straight years, but last year's deficit was considerably smaller than the 9.5 trillion yen deficit for 2023.

FILE - Cars for export are parked at a port in Yokohama, near Tokyo, on July 6, 2020. (AP Photo/Koji Sasahara, File)

FILE - Cars for export are parked at a port in Yokohama, near Tokyo, on July 6, 2020. (AP Photo/Koji Sasahara, File)

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