Students at the University of Idaho showed up in large numbers to vote in the Nov. 3 midterm elections. One of the most widely discussed topics was Proposition 1. Prop 1 failed by 55.9% of votes, and 44.1% voted to pass the measure, according AP News. In Latah County, Prop 1 received a 53.95% yes vote, and a 46.05% no vote.
There have been several mixed reactions among students, with some being grateful for its failure, while others are left feeling disappointed.
Student Mei James expressed in an Argonaut interview that she is “disappointed and discouraged for the future of Idaho.” Through her discussions with other people about Prop 1, she found that many “opinions that were against Proposition 1 were rooted in misinformation, and Proposition 1 was necessary to secure women’s right to healthcare.”
Another student, Kelsie Dechard added that she is “disappointed, and it should not be up to people who the proposition does not directly affect to decide its fate”.
TK Barker discussed that “it was an expected loss, but disappointing because we got so close,” but he noted that it was “amazing progress for Idaho” and people are starting to understand the importance of voting. Student John Bueno was disappointed but saw “positive progress for politics in Idaho” from the closeness of the vote but, “it seemed more disappointing” than what the rest of the United States saw during their midterms.
Several other students held differing viewpoints and were happy that it failed, though many chose to remain anonymous. Student Chase Carter is “very glad that proposition has failed, because we are having a massive decline in children being born, and we are having a massive decline in people wanting to become parents. And a lot of people are not being responsible with how they handle sex or birth. These kids are our future, and they are the next generation, and they need to be nourished and cherished.”
Among some of the anonymous opinions from students were, “if you get pregnant then it is your fault.” They expressed that there “are many ways to prevent pregnancy and people need to be responsible.” These students also said that “there should be exceptions for rape and incest like Idaho already has.”
Prop 1 was a voter-led ballot initiative that aimed to restore reproductive rights and add exceptions to Idaho’s abortion ban, which remains the strictest in the country. Prop 1 would have legalized abortion up to fetal viability, in contrast to Idaho’s current law, which outlaws abortion in all cases with no exceptions. Contrary to popular belief, there are no exceptions for rape and incest in the abortion bill that was passed, rather legal defenses that fall on the doctors to prove that one of these defenses applied to their case.
Olivia Maggs can be reached at [email protected]
Ron Reynolds
It was and always is about money. Anti-Prop1 forces had many times more $ to spend than "yes" proponents. There was a lot of misinformation about what a "yes" vote would mean. If voters are unsure they're going to keep the status quo.
T
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Bernard Baldwin
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