Arkansas Supreme Court upholds rejection of abortion rights petitions, blocking ballot measure

The Arkansas Supreme Court has upheld the state’s rejection of signature petitions in favor putting an abortion rights initiative on the November ballot. The ruling Thursday dashes the hopes of abortion rights supporters to have voters decide the issue in the predominantly Republican state. Petition organizers had submitted more than 101,000 signatures. But election officials said the group didn't comply because documentation for paid signature gatherers was submitted separately and not in a single bundle. The measure aimed to scale back the Arkansas abortion ban, which took effect when the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade in 2022.