Tennessee: Pro-Life Win as Judge Says State Counted Votes Correctly on Amendment 1

State   |   Tennessee Right to Life   |   May 19, 2016   |   5:21PM   |   Nashville, TN

Counsel for the YES on 1 Ballot Committee argued today in state court for the right to intervene specifically on behalf of YES voters threatened with having their votes thrown out. This, following a wrong ruling in April by Federal Judge Kevin Sharp who is demanding a recount of the 2014 election results on Amendment 1.

Sharp says that those voters casting a ballot for Amendment 1 but not in the governor’s race should not be counted.
While denying intervenor status to YES on 1 today, state court Judge Michael Binkley strengthened the state’s case in support of the 2014 vote count and ratification of Amendment 1. Binkley reiterated that his previous ruling in support of the state’s method of counting votes applies unambiguously to Amendment 1 and the 2014 election.

“The Yes On 1 Campaign sought to intervene in this case to ensure that the court considered the voices of real voters who were threatened with the unacceptable possibility of being disenfranchised,” said Daniel Horwitz, attorney for YES on 1 Ballot Committee. “We are deeply grateful that the court recognized these voters’ concerns and addressed them by holding unambiguously that its ruling applies retrospectively to Amendment 1, and that every vote cast in that election counted.”

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Federal Judge Kevin Sharp and pro-abortion lawyers for Planned Parenthood have argued that Binkley’s earlier state court ruling upholding the manner of ratifying an amendment was valid for future amendments but not for those adopted prior to Binkley’s April ruling.

“Pro-life Tennesseans should not be discouraged,” said Brian Harris, president of Tennessee Right to Life. “We remain committed to doing everything possible to ensure that every vote is counted and that the will of Tennessee’s pro-life majority prevails.”

The state Attorney General continues efforts to appeal Judge Sharp’s pro-abortion ruling to the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati.

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