Published

May 06, 2023

San Antonio, TX — San Antonio voters soundly defeated Prop A, a ballot initiative to decriminalize abortion, on the May 6 ballot. Prop A required police and other staff to ignore state laws protecting unborn babies’ lives and women’s health, fertility, and safety from illegal and back-alley abortions in the City of San Antonio. Prop A also contained five other provisions, including banning arrests for theft up to $750 and vandalism up to $2,500.

The unofficial final vote was 72% against and 28% for, among nearly 142,000 votes cast.

Texas Alliance for Life Communications Director and former San Antonio resident Amy O’Donnell had this to say about Prop A’s defeat:

We are tremendously pleased to see that San Antonio voters have defeated Prop A so decisively. Prop A would have been tragic for unborn children and victims of trafficking who would have been left without the protection from abortion they deserve by San Antonio police. Prop A was bad news for San Antonio churches, pro-life pregnancy centers, and businesses that would become easy targets for theft and vandalism. Prop A would have put the family culture that makes the city so vibrantly alive and beautiful at risk.

We hope this defeat sends a strong message to those activists seeking to circumvent statewide laws that protect unborn babies from abortion. Gimmicks, like the bundling of the decriminalization of abortion with other measures, did not work in San Antonio. Texans won’t stand for it, and our cities deserve better.

Today, the will of San Antonio voters prevailed. And the will of voters across the state — who spoke through their state elected officials when Texas enacted protective laws like the Human Life Protection Act — has been affirmed.

Texas Alliance for Life led the early efforts to defeat Prop A, and those efforts continued until voting ended today. We petitioned the Texas Supreme Court to block the proposition as written because it violated several provisions of state election law or at least delay the vote until November. The Court answered that no challenge would be considered unless the proposition passed, which it has not.

We spoke against putting the measure on the ballot at a San Antonio City Council meeting. After that, Texas Alliance for Life PAC launched a robust ground game to educate and motivate pro-life voters to turn out against Prop A at the polls.

We will continue to educate people across the state about the vast resources Texas offers women with unplanned pregnancies, including the State’s generously-funded Alternatives to Abortion program as well as the hundreds of privately funded organizations and church programs that provide services years after the birth of the child.

CONTACT
Amy O’Donnell
512.477.1244 (o)
amy@TexasAllianceforLife.org

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