Arkansas abortion rights ballot initiative rejected by secretary of state
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SUMMARY
On Wednesday, Arkansas Secretary of State John Thurston rejected an abortion-rights ballot measure proposed by Arkansas for Limited Government, citing procedural errors. The group, which claimed to have gathered over 100,000 signatures, exceeding the required 90,704, failed to submit necessary statements regarding paid signature gatherers. Thurston pointed out that the group did not confirm that canvassers were properly briefed on state laws before collecting signatures. He also noted discrepancies in the number of volunteer versus paid signatures collected. Arkansas for Limited Government insisted they had complied with regulations and accusing Thurston of making 'unjustified legal interpretations'. Similar measures are advancing in several other states this year, including Arizona, Nebraska, Colorado, Missouri, and Florida.