Argument for
By Ballot Question Committee in favor; committee members: Lindsey Harmon (Chair), Denise Lopez, and Bradley Schrager
no rhetorical technique found
Decisions about abortion should be left to women and qualified healthcare professionals, who take a pledge to act in their patients’ best interest. When it comes to something as personal and complicated as pregnancy, politicians are never more qualified to make healthcare decisions than women and their doctors. That’s why it is so important to vote YES on this amendment.
People across Nevada are voting YES because:
• YES protects doctors so that they will never have to risk jail time just to treat the patient in front of them.1
• Extreme abortion bans are already in place across the country – from Texas2 to Florida3 to right next door in Utah and Arizona – and they are having dangerous effects.
A 10-year-old girl from Ohio who was raped had to travel to Indiana to get the abortion she needed,4 and in Texas, one woman who miscarried lost liters of blood and had to go on a breathing machine before doctors could legally help her.5 YES protects the right to abortion in our state for good, so these tragic stories can never happen here.
• YES establishes a permanent layer of protection6 so that no matter who holds office in our state, extreme abortion bans7 cannot become law in Nevada.
• YES keeps families – not politicians – in charge of their own healthcare decisions, so that women can make these personal decisions in consultation with their doctors and those they love and trust. We should trust women and doctors to make the right decisions for their own situations without government getting involved.
If this amendment fails, future generations could have fewer rights and freedoms than their parents and grandparents.8 Vote YES to keep politicians out of our personal, private decisions. Question 6 has no fiscal or environmental impact.
From washoecounty.gov, the official voter guide.
Argument against
By Ballot Question Committee opposed; committee members: Emily Mimnaugh (Chair) and Jason Guinasso
Loaded LanguageAppeal to FearExaggeration/HyperboleCard StackingBlack-and-White FallacyRepetition
Vote NO to stop Question 6 from re-writing our State Constitution.
Vote No to stop Question 6 from writing a blank check to fund unlimited, 9-month abortions using taxpayer money.17 Question 6 may force you the taxpayer to pay for abortions.18 The cost and fiscal impact of Question 6 cannot be determined:19 It may cost taxpayers MORE than $120-million-dollars every year.20 Vote NO to protect our current abortion law.
Loaded Language · “writing a blank check to fund unlimited, 9-month abortions” — Emotionally charged phrasing like 'blank check' and 'unlimited, 9-month abortions' is used to provoke a reaction rather than describe the measure neutrally.
Appeal to Fear · “Question 6 may force you the taxpayer to pay for abortions”, “It may cost taxpayers MORE than $120-million-dollars every year” — It raises anxiety about uncertain, possibly huge costs to the taxpayer and urges a No vote as the remedy.
Exaggeration/Hyperbole · “unlimited, 9-month abortions”, “MORE than $120-million-dollars every year” — It overstates the measure's effect by claiming 'unlimited' abortions through nine months and a possible cost above $120 million, which are speculative.
Abortion is legal in Nevada.21 Currently, doctors can do abortions—without restriction—up to 24 weeks (6 months).22 After that, it's also allowed to save the mom's life or health.23 Our current law is more pro-choice than Roe v.
Wade.24 Only voters can change our state’s abortion law, and it hasn’t changed in decades.25 Unlike Nevada, other states have recently changed their abortion laws, and “litigation has exploded.”26 Vote NO to keep the courts out of private, personal decisions.27 If you like the current law, protect it: Vote NO.
If you don’t like the current law, vote NO so it’s not even harder to fix.28 Question 6 has no bright-line rule saying when abortion is legal. Is it always legal at 4 months? 6 months? 9 months? Our current law is clear. Question 6 is not. Question 6 has no bright-line rule saying when taxpayers must pay for abortions. Do taxpayers pay for an optional abortion at 9 months?
Our current law is clear. Question 6 is not. What about doctors? Can a non-doctor perform a surgical abortion at 9 months outside a hospital? Question 6 may not stop this, but the current law protects women. Vote NO. What about parents? Can a non-doctor perform a secret surgical abortion on a 13-year-old girl? Question 6 may not stop this, but the current law protects children and parents.
Appeal to Fear · “Can a non-doctor perform a surgical abortion at 9 months outside a hospital?”, “Can a non-doctor perform a secret surgical abortion on a 13-year-old girl?” — Raises a vivid, alarming hypothetical of a late-term surgical abortion by a non-doctor outside a hospital to frighten voters.
Card Stacking · “Question 6 may not stop this, but the current law protects women.”, “Question 6 may not stop this, but the current law protects children and parents.” — Admits the measure may not even enable the scenario yet implies it does, selectively presenting the claim while omitting complicating facts.
Black-and-White Fallacy · “Vote NO.” — Frames the vote as a simple binary directive with no nuance.
Loaded Language · “secret surgical abortion” — The word 'secret' adds sinister emotional charge to the scenario.
Vote NO. When laws are unclear, the result is expensive lawsuits.29 The legal, fiscal and environmental impacts of Question 6 are unknown.30 Lawsuits cost taxpayers money.31 Vote NO because Question 6 is:
• Dangerous: It lets people who aren't doctors do abortions.
• Wrong: It allows abortions through all 9 months of pregnancy.
• Harmful: It strips out rules that keep women safe.
• Expensive: It may cause lawsuits and cost millions to fund abortions.
• Unwanted: It changes our current abortion laws which are clear. Keep our laws clear. Keep tax spending transparent. Keep courts out of abortion. Keep decisions between women and doctors. Vote NO.
Loaded Language · “Unwanted” — The label 'Unwanted' is an emotionally charged framing that casts the measure as plainly rejected rather than arguing against it.
Repetition · “Keep our laws clear.”, “Keep tax spending transparent.”, “Keep courts out of abortion.”, “Keep decisions between women and doctors.” — The word 'Keep' is repeated as a slogan opener across successive sentences to build familiarity and persuasion.
From washoecounty.gov, the official voter guide.