2022 Vermont Proposal 5

Proposal 5
November 8, 2022 (2022-11-08)
Reproductive Liberty Amendment[1]
Results
Choice
 Votes %
Yes 212,323 76.77%
No 64,239 23.23%
Total votes 276,562 100.00%

The 2022 Vermont reproductive rights initiative, officially titled the "Reproductive Liberty Amendment", and listed on the ballot as Proposition 5, was a legislatively referred constitutional amendment that was adopted on November 8, 2022, by a landslide majority of 76.8% of voters. It codified reproductive rights in the Constitution of Vermont. It was signed into the constitution by Republican governor Phil Scott on 13 December 2022.[3]

Background

In the 19th century, bans by state legislatures on abortion were about protecting the life of the mother, given the number of deaths caused by abortions; state governments saw themselves as looking out for the lives of their citizens.[4] Vermont's first ban on abortion was passed in 1846.[5] It read:

“Whoever maliciously, or without lawful justification, with intent to cause and procure the miscarriage of a woman, then pregnant with child, shall administer to her, prescribe for her, or advise, or direct her to take or swallow any poison, drug, medicine, or noxious thing, or shall cause or procure her, with like intent, to take or swallow any poison, drug, medicine, or noxious thing, and whoever maliciously, and without lawful justification, shall use any instrument or means whatever, with the like intent, and every person, with the like intent, knowingly aiding and assisting such offenders, shall be deemed guilty of felony, if the woman die in consequence thereof, and shall be imprisoned in the state prison, not more than ten years, nor less than five years; and if the woman does not die in consequence thereof, such offenders shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor; and shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison not exceeding three years, nor less than one year, and pay a fine not exceeding two hundred dollars.”

In 1970, the Vermont Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the state's abortion ban in the context of the Constitution of the United States in State v. Bartlett.[6] However, the court overturned the ban less than two years later, in Beacham v. Leahy, based on the Vermont Constitution.[7]

Text

Personal reproductive liberty
That an individual's right to personal reproductive autonomy is central to the liberty and dignity to determine one's own life course, and shall not be denied or infringed, unless justified by a compelling state interest achieved by the least restrictive means.

Endorsements

Yes
U.S. Representatives
State legislators
Individuals
Organizations
No
State Representatives
Organizations

Results

2022 Vermont Proposal 5
ChoiceVotes%
For212,32376.77
Against64,23923.23
Total276,562100.00

See also

References

  1. ↑ "2022 General Election Constitutional Amendment Question". Vermont Secretary of State. Retrieved May 6, 2024.
  2. ↑ "Vermont Proposal 5 Election Results: Constitutional Right to Reproductive Autonomy". The New York Times. Retrieved December 5, 2025.
  3. ↑ "Vermont governor signs amendment protecting abortion rights". AP News. December 13, 2022. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
  4. ↑ Buell, Samuel (January 1, 1991). "Criminal Abortion Revisited". New York University Law Review. 66 (6): 1774–1831. PMID 11652642.
  5. ↑ Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Org., No. 19-1392, slip op. at 84 (U.S. June 24, 2022).
  6. ↑ "State v. Bartlett". Justia. October 6, 1970. Retrieved May 6, 2024.
  7. ↑ "Beecham v. Leahy". Justia. January 14, 1972. Retrieved May 6, 2024.
  8. 1 2 St. Angelo, Lilly (May 3, 2022). "After early draft on Roe v. Wade is leaked, Vermont politicians push for Proposition 5". Burlington Free Press. Retrieved May 6, 2024.
  9. 1 2 "Vermont House approves reproductive rights constitutional amendment, sending it to voters". Brattleboro Reformer. February 8, 2022. Retrieved May 19, 2024.
  10. 1 2 "Letter: League of Women Voters supports Article 22". Brattleboro Reformer. April 11, 2024. Retrieved May 19, 2024.
  11. ↑ Coyne, Christopher (September 14, 2022). "Pastoral Letter from Bishop Coyne re: Creating a Culture of Life". Vermont Catholic. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
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