Ohio Secretary of State consulted with anti-abortion groups while drafting the contested ballot language used to describe Issue 1.

Ohio Secretary of State, Frank LaRose consulted with three prominent anti-abortion groups while drafting the contested ballot language used to describe Issue 1, an abortion-rights measure, overwhelmingly approved by voters earlier this month. The Republican elections chief and 2024 U.S. Senate candidate revealed having help with the wording while speaking at a Nov. 17 candidate forum. The constitutional amendment’s backers blasted the ballot summary offered by LaRose, in his role as chair of the Ohio Ballot Board, as “rife with misleading and defective language” intended to encourage “no” votes. LaRose’s wording substituted “unborn child” for “fetus” and suggested the measure would limit “citizens of the State” from passing laws to restrict abortion access when it actually limited state government from doing so.