Voters back Nebraska's ban on abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy and reject a competing measure

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska voters supported a measure Tuesday that enshrines the state’s current ban on abortions after the 12th week of pregnancy in the state constitution, and they rejected a competing measure that sought to expand abortion rights. Nebraska was the first state to have competing abortion amendments on the same ballot since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, ending the nationwide right to abortion and allowing states to decide for themselves. The dueling measures were among a record number of petition-initiated measures on Nebraska’s ballot Tuesday.

A majority of voters supported a measure enshrining the state's current ban on abortion after the first 12 weeks of pregnancy in the state constitution. The measure will also allow for further restrictions. Last year, the Legislature passed the 12-week ban, which includes exceptions for cases of rape and incest and to protect the life of the pregnant woman.

Voters rejected the other abortion measure. If they had passed it by a larger number of “for” votes than the 12-week measure, it would have amended the constitution to guarantee the right to have an abortion until viability — the standard under Roe that is the point at which a fetus might survive outside the womb. Some babies can survive with medical help after 21 weeks of gestation.

Abortion was on the ballot in several other states, as well. Coming into the election, voters in all seven states that had decided on abortion-related ballot measures since the reversal of Roe had favored abortion rights, including in some conservative states.

The 12-week ban measure was bankrolled by some of Nebraska's wealthiest people, including Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts, who previously served as governor and donated more than $1.1 million. His mother, Marlene Ricketts, gave $4 million to the cause. Members of the Peed family, which owns publishing company Sandhills Global, also gave $1 million.

The effort was organized under the name Protect Women and Children and was heavily backed by religious organizations, including the Nebraska Catholic Conference, a lobbying group that has organized rallies, phone banks and community townhalls to drum up support for the measure.

The effort to enshrine viability as the standard was called Protect Our Rights Nebraska and had the backing of several medical, advocacy and social justice groups. Planned Parenthood donated nearly $1 million to the cause, with the American Civil Liberties Union, I Be Black Girl, Nebraska Appleseed and the Women’s Fund of Omaha also contributing significantly to the roughly $3.7 million raised by Protect Our Rights.

Nebraska voters approved two measures Tuesday that will create a system for the use and manufacture of medical marijuana, if the measures survive an ongoing legal challenge.

The measures legalize the possession and use of medical marijuana, and allow for the manufacture, distribution and delivery of the drug. One would let patients and caregivers possess up to 5 ounces (142 grams) of marijuana if recommended by a doctor. The other would create the Nebraska Medical Cannabis Commission, which would oversee the private groups that would manufacture and dispense the drug.

Those initiatives were challenged over allegations that the petition campaign that put them on the ballot broke election rules. Nebraska's attorney general said supporters of the measures may have submitted several thousand invalid signatures, and one man has been charged in connection with 164 allegedly fraudulent signatures. That means a judge could still invalidate the measures.

Voters also opted Tuesday to repeal a new conservative-backed law that allocates millions of dollars in taxpayer money to fund private school tuition.

Finally, they approved a measure that will require all Nebraska employers to provide at least 40 hours of paid sick leave to their employees.

Chris McCollister, left, votes at a voting booth along with others in her district on Election Day Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024, at Redeemer Lutheran Church in Lincoln, Neb. (Kenneth Ferriera/Lincoln Journal Star via AP)

Voters, including Olivia DeBoer, center, fill out their ballots at a Holiday Inn Express and Suites in Omaha, Neb., on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (Nikos Frazier/Omaha World-Herald via AP)

Nikolas Cardenas-Vazquez fills out his ballot inside the gym at Saints Peter & Paul School in Omaha, Neb., on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (Chris Machian/Omaha World-Herald via AP)

Oliver Barragan, 2, center, waits for his mother, Richelle Barragan, left, as she votes on Election Day at Werner Park, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024, in Papillion, Neb. (Liz Rymarev/Omaha World-Herald via AP)

Voters line up to cast their ballots at Dundee Elementary School in Omaha, Neb., on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Bonnie Ryan)

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Nathan Hochman defeated George Gascón in the race for Los Angeles County district attorney, unseating an incumbent known as the godfather of progressive prosecutors.

Hochman, a former federal prosecutor, calls himself a “hard middle” candidate who would reject both mass incarceration and the “public safety failure” of Gascón’s tenure the past four years.

He advanced out of a primary field of 11 challengers and spent most of the campaign attacking Gascón policies that he says led to increased crime and a lack of consequences for juvenile offenders. During debates he spotlighted rising violent crime in the county, a trend also seen statewide and at the national level.

Hochman’s victory reflects growing discontent in the state with progressive district attorneys who have pushed criminal justice reform. Previously there were two attempts to recall Gascón that failed to qualify for the ballot; San Francisco voters ousted one of the first reform-minded prosecutors elected to office in 2022; and Oakland voters were asked in Tuesday’s election whether to recall their own district attorney.

Gascón co-authored a ballot measure passed by California voters in 2014 that reclassified certain low-level drug and property crimes as misdemeanors instead of felonies.

Despite Gascón being a former Los Angeles police officer, Hochman had the support of local police unions.

He was also endorsed by victims’ advocacy groups; former district attorney Jackie Lacey, whom Gascón defeated in 2020; developer and former mayoral candidate Rick Caruso; and more than 70 current and former county elected officials. Hochman raised nearly $4 million for the campaign.

A Southern California native, Hochman emphasized his past prosecutorial experience as assistant U.S. attorney in California’s Central District. He has also practiced as a private defense attorney.

He previously ran unsuccessfully for California attorney general as a Republican, but was an independent in this race and describes himself as a lifelong centrist.

FILE - Lyle, left, and Erik Menendez sit with defense attorney Leslie Abramson, right, in Beverly Hills Municipal Court during a hearing, Nov. 26, 1990. (AP Photo/Nick Ut, File)

FILE - Nathan Hochman, and independent candidate for Los Angeles County District Attorney, talks during a news conference in Los Angeles, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes,File)

FILE - Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón speaks to members of the media in Los Angeles, Calif., Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope, File)