Press Release

Although Arizona voters will not get a chance to weigh in on a constitutional amendment to protect abortion access this November, Arizonans for Reproductive Freedom will continue to harness the passion of the movement to ensure the measure qualifies for the 2024 ballot.

In only 61 days, more than 3,000 volunteers braved the summer heat to help collect more than 175,000 signatures – an average of 2,700 signatures per day. Dedicated volunteers began collecting record numbers of signatures shortly after the campaign filed and was followed by a mass mobilization after the final Dobbs decision on June 24th. Since the decision, interest in the campaign exploded, with hundreds of thousands of visits to the website and more than 100 locally-owned businesses across Arizona assisting in the effort.

“Over the past few weeks, I have been consistently awed by the passion and enthusiasm of people to get involved. This is the largest volunteer-driven ballot measure campaign in the history of our state – and we are only just beginning,” said Dr Victoria Fewell, Tucson-based OB-GYN and Chair of Arizonans for Reproductive Freedom. “This may have started from a moment, but it is growing into a lasting statewide movement.”

Arizona is one of only two citizen-driven initiatives in Republican-controlled states seeking to enshrine abortion rights in state constitutions. A campaign in Michigan qualified for this November’s ballot with 800,000 signatures – an effort that began two years ago. That Arizona’s campaign so dramatically outpaced Michigan’s shows that Arizonans are eager to restore reproductive rights in this state.

“I am confident that we will succeed in bringing this to voters in 2024. This campaign will not stop until abortions are once again legal and accessible across Arizona,” said Shasta McManus, campaign Treasurer. “Since June 24th, Arizona has been operating under a law written when the Civil War was still raging and Arizona was not yet a state. This is barbaric and unacceptable and underlines the urgency of this movement.”

“On the ground, I have been inundated by the stories of suffering and fear,” said Amy Fitch-Heacock, one of the co-founders of Arizonans for Reproductive Freedom. “Lives and livelihoods are being devastated right now. We want the people of Arizona to know that we will be fighting for them every day until their rights are restored.”

“I’ve been overwhelmed, yet grateful by the thousands of volunteers, from all lived experiences we’ve had through this movement,” said Shaq McCoy, one of the co-founders of Arizonans for Reproductive Freedom. “It is because of them that Arizonans will soon have a choice on bodily autonomy.”

Arizonans for Reproductive Freedom is a grassroots, volunteer-driven coalition of community members founded by abortion providers, healthcare professionals, reproductive rights advocates, community stakeholders, and concerned Arizonans from every corner of the state committed to guaranteeing the fundamental right to reproductive freedom.

To get involved in the movement, visit: www.azreproductivefreedom.com

Campaign stats: 

• 1,760 Arizonans donated to the campaign
• 82% of total donations were from Arizona
• 3,000 volunteers circulated petitions
• Over the last week of our efforts, the website had 291,000 unique visits
• The petition was hosted in over 100 businesses across the state
• On the day the Dobbs decision was released, daily website traffic grew 6,100%
• This past weekend, website traffic was 200 times higher than pre-Dobbs