In 1985 the Nevada Legislature passed a commonsense law requiring one parent notification prior to a young girl getting an abortion. It was immediately sued by Planned Parenthood and an injunction (blocking its enforcement) was granted. That law (NRS442.255) has sat in Nevada law without any effect. As a result, girls, even as young as 12, could get an abortion without a parent knowing.
Nevada Right to Life was involved in getting the law passed in 1985 and has worked to get it enforced since then. In 2022, Nevada Right to Life enlisted two of Nevada's district attorneys to challenge the injunction and paid the legal fees for this effort. In March of 2025, Judge Anna Traum removed the injunction and the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld her decision. Nevada Right to Life went head to head with Planned Parenthood and WON!
Planned Parenthood has now initiated a state action to deny parents and underage girls the very real and necessary protection provided by parental involvement laws. Nevada Right to Life will continue to fight. If you are interested in donating to support this important action, please click here.
Sadly, Question 6, Nevada’s Radical Abortion Amendment, gained 65% of the vote on November 5, 2024. However, it must pass again in November 2026 to amend the Constitution. Polling showed that the vast majority of voters did not understand current law, the effect of a Constitutional Amendment, or the change in law that will result.
Nevada already allows abortion through 6 months of pregnancy. After 6 months to protect the life and health of the mother, abortion is available in a licensed hospital. This can’t be changed except by a vote of the people. (NRS442.250)
A constitutional amendment provides boundaries that all laws must fit within – jeopardizing current law and severely limiting future laws. If a constitutional amendment has unintended consequences, it is very difficult and costly to remedy. And when the health, safety and life of women, young girls, and the almost-born baby are at risk, caution is necessary.
| Vote No Current law remains in effect | If Question 6 passes |
| Abortion up to 6 months | Third trimester abortions up to birth - unregulated |
| Only Licensed Physicians can perform | Expanded to practitioner of healthcare (nurse, chiropractor, etc) |
| One parent must be notified prior to underage girl receiving an abortion | No parental notification or consent EVER. |
| Common sense health and safety regulation | State and local government can NOT regulate for health and safety |
| No woman is punished for an abortion | Women punished by unqualified practitioners in unsanitary locations |
Question 6 will appear on the ballot in November of 2026. If it passes again, the Nevada Constitution will be amended to include the following section:
Section 25:
Sec. 1. All individuals shall have a fundamental right to abortion performed or administered by a qualified health care practitioner until fetal viability, or when needed to protect the life or health of the pregnant patient, without interference from the state or its political subdivisions. The right established by this section shall not be denied, burdened, or infringed upon unless justified by a compelling state interest that is achieved by the least restrictive means. Sec. 2. As used in this section: A “compelling state interest” means an interest which is limited exclusively to the state’s interest in protecting, maintaining, or improving the health of an individual who is seeking abortion care that is consistent with accepted clinical standards of practice; and “Fetal viability” means the point in pregnancy when, in the professional judgment of the patient's treating health care practitioner, there is a significant likelihood of the fetus' sustained survival outside the uterus without the application of extraordinary medical measures.
Nevadans will vote on a constitutional amendment, Question 6, in November. If it passes in 2024 and 2026, abortion will be an individual fundamental right without limit. No doctors. No safety regulations. All nine months. No parental involvement for underage girls seeking an abortion.
Risky for women. Dangerous for girls. Deadly for the almost-born. Bad for Nevada.
Today, Nevada’s federal court was asked to lift its order barring enforcement of Nevada’s requirement that parents of minors seeking abortion be notified before any abortion. The request was made in a motion by Jason D. Woodbury, Carson City District Attorney, and Stephen B. Rye, Lyon County District Attorney. The case is Glick v. Ford.
Nevada's parental-notice law (NRS442.255) requires that a custodial parent or guardian be notified before a physician performs an abortion on an unmarried or unemancipated minor unless the physician believes “an abortion is immediately necessary to preserve the patient’s life or health.” But the minor may seek a judicial bypass, in which case notice would not be required if she proves (a) “she is mature enough to make an intelligent and informed decision; (b) she is “financially independent or emancipated,” or (c) the notice “would be detrimental to her best interests.”
The Glick order should be lifted because it was based on a federal abortion right that no longer exists. In 1985, abortion providers Dr. Glick and Planned Parenthood of Washoe County sued to halt enforcement of the parental-notice law based on the abortion right announced in Roe v. Wade. But in the 2022 Dobbs decision, the U.S. Supreme Court overruled Roe. So the order halting enforcement has lost its basis and should be lifted.
Moreover, even under Roe, such parental-notification laws were permitted. In fact in 1997, the U.S. Supreme Court expressly rejected (in Lambert v. Wicklund (1997)) the opinion upholding Glick on appeal in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
James Bopp, Jr., of The Bopp Law Firm, PC, and counsel for district attorneys Woodbury and Rye, says: “Laws requiring parental notification for minors seeking abortion have long been upheld even under Roe v. Wade. With Roe overruled, there is no reason why Nevada’s parental-notification law should not be enforced. And notifying parents is vital to protecting both parents and their pregnant daughters.”
Melissa Clement, Executive Director of Nevada Right to Life, says “an overwhelming majority of Nevadans support commonsense, time-tested parental involvement laws. Parents are the rightful decision-makers for their children’s medical decisions. It is time the courts restore parental rights.”
The 82nd Legislature of the state of Nevada came to an end at midnight on June 5, 2023. Although the assembly consisted of a super-majority of pro-death zealots and the senate was one shy of a super-majority of pro-death zealots, we were able to fight back most of the bad bills. Here is a breakdown on the bills we fought.
| BILL # | DESCRIPTION | RESULT |
|---|---|---|
| SB131 | Protects those who would transport a child over the border for a secret abortion | Veto proof super majority passed. Signed into law. |
| SJR7 | Step one of amending Nevada Constitution to protect unfettered abortion as a fundamental right. Must pass the next legislature, then go to a vote of the people. | Party line vote. No ability for veto. Can stop if we get a majority in one house. |
| AB383 | Would prohibit local communities regulating abortion facilities. | Passed. Vetoed by Gov. Lombardo. Must maintain current numbers of legislators to sustain veto first week of next session without hearing or public comment.. |
| SB239 | Assisted suicide. This bill follows the model of Oregon and Canada and will open the door to the problems seen there. When assisted suicide becomes a treatment option, it becomes a valued option for cost-cutting with insurance, Medicare, and Medicaid. There are no safeguards protecting the vulnerable and the elderly. The definition of terminal is so broad that diabetes and other chronic but only life-threatening without treatment conditions could qualify a patient for a lethal prescription. | Passed with bipartisan opposition. Vetoed by Gov. Lombardo at end of session. Must maintain current numbers of legislators to sustain veto first week of next session without hearing or public comment.. |
| SB439/AB357 | Radical sex ed bills that removed curriculum decision-making from the local community and gave it to isolated, unelected bureaucrats at the state level. Comprehensive sex ed mandating educating kids on reproductive rights and radical sexuality/gender education. Change of opt in to opt out reducing parental control. | Gutted and killed |
| AB418 | CPC harassment and intimidation | Killed |
| SJR6 | Annual sessions | Died |
| AB423 | Budweiser amendment bill. Perfectly good bill protecting parental speech at school boards. Was gutted in the middle of the night by Senator Fabian Donate to fine school boards $5K per day for protecting girls sports and private spaces. | Killed. |
Catherine Cortez Masto is extreme on abortion. She has voted for and pushed:
She is too extreme on abortion.
Because it does.
Nevadans have an easy choice to make this election cycle. With the recent Dobbs v Jackson Supreme Court decision which overturned Roe and returned abortion law-making back to the states and the people, democrats and their allies in the press have raced to see who can be more extreme in their anti-life, anti-woman, anti-unborn rhetoric. Our endorsements for the statewide races are:
VOTE NO ON CONSTITUTIONAL QUESTION 1 AND 3.
On December 1, 2021, the United States Supreme Court will hear the abortion case Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization concerning Mississippi’s 2018 “Gestational Age Act” which protects babies after 15-weeks gestation. The court is considering the question as to whether all pre-viability prohibitions on elective abortions are unconstitutional.
Viability, the time when the child can “survive on its own” apart from the mother, is considered to be about 21-22 weeks. Dobbs v Jackson could be a direct challenge to Roe v Wade and the subsequent Casey decision which dictate that “a State may not prohibit any woman from making the ultimate decision to terminate her pregnancy before viability.”
The state of Mississippi and others note that the state has interests that come into play prior to viability and that the Roe and Casey decisions prevent them from even being considered.
For instance, abortions at 15 weeks are more dangerous and states need the ability to protect women considering these abortions. Roe and Casey are based on medical research that is 50 years old. There are now studies showing that early in the “second trimester” (before 15 weeks) the unborn can feel pain and is conscious. That means that Casey and Roe protect the killing of conscious/sentient, pain sensing human beings. That adds an extra level of barbarism and inhumanity to the outrage of the killing of innocent human beings.
US Abortion Law Is Radical and Horrific
Harvard Law Professor Mary Ann Glendon and Notre Dame’s O. Carter Snead say that the Mississippi law prohibiting abortion after 15 weeks is a modest proposal compared to abortion laws around the world. The militant opposition to a ban after fifteen weeks shows how truly radical and outrageous both the abortion movement and abortion law is in the United States. Horrifyingly, the United States is just one of seven nations that allow abortion beyond 20 weeks including China and North Korea.
Our colleagues at National Right to Life note that “At 15-weeks gestation, a little boy or girl’s heart has been beating for over two months. Brain waves have been detectable for 7 weeks. At eight weeks of gestation, brain waves can be detected. At nine weeks, the baby is kicking and swimming. At week ten, every organ is in place and the baby can begin to hear. At weeks eleven and twelve, teeth begin to form, fingernails develop. The baby can turn her head and frown. The baby can hiccup. At week 13, the baby can grasp objects placed in her hand; all organ systems are functioning. The baby also has skeletal structure, nerves, and circulation.”
Please join us in praying that the Supreme Court finally recognizes the humanity of the unborn. The case is not expected to be settled until the spring. Until then, Nevada Right to Life will provide information and perspective from several different groups and their briefings as to why the Mississippi law should be upheld and why Roe and Casey must be overturned.
Every registered voter in Nevada should have received their ballot for the General Election in the mail, even if not requested. PLEASE KEEP YOUR EYES OPEN for your ballot and secure it. We recommend that you fill out your ballot with your choices marked, put it in a safe place, and then vote IN PERSON during early voting (when you go, surrender your ballot after writing void on it).
Click here to get suggested candidates based on your address.
President: Donald J Trump
CD1: Kamau Bakari
CD2: Marc Amodei
CD3: Dan "Big Dan" Rodimer
CD4: Jim Marchant
Justice of the Supreme Court: Douglas Herndon
Senate District 4 – Esper Hickman
Senate District 5 – Carrie Buck
Senate District 6 – April Becker
Senate District 11 – Joshua Dowden
Senate District 15 – Heidi Gansert
Senate District 18 – Scott T Hammond
Senate District 19 – Pete Goicoechea
Assembly District 2 – Heidi Kasama
Assembly District 4 – Richard McArthur
Assembly District 6 – Katie Duncan
Assembly District 7 – Anthony Palmer
Assembly District 9 – Barbara Altman
Assembly District 10 – Chris Hisgen
Assembly District 11 – Eric Krattiger
Assembly District 12 – Jeremy Graves
Assembly District 13 – Tom Roberts
Assembly District 15 – Stan Vaughn
Assembly District 16 – Reyna “Alex” Sajdak
Assembly District 17 – Jack Polcyn
Assembly District 18 – Heather Ann Florian
Assembly District 19 – Ann “Annie” Black
Assembly District 21 – Cherlynn Arrington
Assembly District 22 – Melissa Hardy
Assembly District 23 – Glenn Leavitt
Assembly District 25 – Jill Tolles
Assembly District 26 – Lisa Krasner
Assembly District 27 – Barb Hawn
Assembly District 29 – Steven Delisle
Assembly District 30 – Charlene Young
Assembly District 31 – Jill Dickman
Assembly District 32 – Alexis Hansen
Assembly District 33 – John C. Ellison
Assembly District 34 – Jay Thomas Carlson
Assembly District 35 – Jay Calhoun
Assembly District 36 – Gregory Hafen II
Assembly District 37 – Andy Matthews
Assembly District 38 – Robin Titus
Assembly District 39 – Jim Wheeler
Assembly District 40 – Phillip PK O’Neill
Assembly District 41 – Erika Smith
Endorsement Process
Nevada Right to Life lobbies on a local, state, and federal level. In support of this goal, we provide endorsements and candidate information to enable pro-life voters to vote for the best advocates who can then pass laws and enact policy that protects life from conception to natural death.
Candidates receive endorsements based on the following criteria:
Non-life issues are not considered in the endorsement process. We are a single issue group. Life is the first issue. If a candidate does not value life, it is doubtful they will value much else.
Nevada Right to Life commends President Trump’s nomination of an impressively well-qualified judge to the Supreme Court. Judge Barrett has demonstrated a commitment to defending the text and history of the Constitution and the principles of judicial restraint.
Amy Coney Barrett stands in stark contrast with the judicial-legislative activists who would be nominated by Joe Biden. Joe Biden has promised to impose a litmus test of his nominees and their support of Roe V. Wade.
Judge Barrett earned her J.D. summa cum laude from Notre Dame Law School, where she was first in her class and received the Hoynes Prize, the law school’s highest honor. She clerked for Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Beginning in 2002, Barrett taught law at Notre Dame, and was named “Distinguished Professor of the Year” three times. In 2017, she was confirmed by the U.S. Senate to serve as a judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. She is married to Jesse Barrett, an Assistant United States Attorney and the couple has seven children.
