In the News

The Reproductive Freedom for All initiative is being coordinated by the Fairness Project, “the foremost incubator, funder, and convener of progressive ballot initiatives” in the country.

Fairness Project, which supported the activists who opposed the amendment, celebrated the fact that, as the group’s executive director, Kelly Hall, said, “the people of South Dakota have preserved their right to use direct democracy.” But the group warns that the South Dakota battle should be seen as part of an “orchestrated and ongoing attacks.

If the measure is approved, Medicaid expansion is expected to boost insurance access for nearly 43,000 South Dakotans, according to the Fairness Project, a ballot measure advocacy group.

“Today, the people of South Dakota have preserved their right to use direct democracy,” said Kelly Hall, executive director of The Fairness Project, which campaigned against Amendment C and has helped several states expand Medicaid via voter referendums since 2017.

“Everyone understands that this is both a fight for direct democracy, but it’s also a proxy election for the issues that voters will face in the ballot box in November,” said Kelly Hall, the executive director of the Fairness Project.

There’s a path forward in the states: If the Supreme Court does indeed overturn Roe, enshrining reproductive rights in state constitutions via ballot measures will guarantee the protection of reproductive health care for years to come, particularly in states where Republicans control the legislature.

We talk with Kelly Hall of the Fairness Project, which is gathering signatures to put a referendum on the ballot this fall to bypass the legislature and take the matter directly to voters. If they approve it, the measure would amend the state’s constitution to make reproductive freedom a right.

Kelly Hall, the Executive Director of Fairness Project, appeared on The Oklahoma News Report, an OETA PBS program, to condemn legislation moving through the Oklahoma legislature that could block citizen-led campaigns from placing questions on the ballot through Oklahoma’s referendum process.