2014 Tennessee Amendment 1

The amendment added the following to Article I of the Constitution of Tennessee:

"Nothing in this Constitution secures or protects a right to abortion or requires the funding of an abortion. The people retain the right through their elected state representatives and state senators to enact, amend, or repeal statutes regarding abortion, including, but not limited to, circumstances of pregnancy resulting from rape or incest or when necessary to save the life of the mother."^[4]

The following is the official text from the Tennessee Secretary of State, that appeared on the ballot:

"Shall Article I, of the Constitution of Tennessee be amended by adding the following language as a new, appropriately designated section?

Nothing in this Constitution secures or protects a right to abortion or requires the funding of an abortion. The people retain the right through their elected state representatives and state senators to enact, amend, or repeal statutes regarding abortion, including, but not limited to, circumstances of pregnancy resulting from rape or incest or when necessary to save the life of the mother."

A vote for Amendment 1 supports ensuring the Constitution of Tennessee does not uphold most abortions and supporting the General Assembly having power to pass laws regarding the regulation of abortion.

A vote against Amendment 1 opposes this amendment and restricts the General Assembly from creating legislation or passing laws that regulate abortion.

Officials and politicians, mainly Republicans, voiced their opposition for the amendment, both during the vote on it in the General Assembly and when it appeared on the ballot. Pro-life organizations, such as Tennessee Right to Life and Americans United for Life, also voiced strong support for the amendment. Leslie Hunse, the education director for Tennessee Right to Life, said, "We want our constitution to go back to neutral on the issue of abortion, so we can pass some common sense regulations to protect mothers and children."^[5]

"Yes on 1" was the main organization supporting the campaign, with signs and television advertisements.

Vote NO on One Tennessee led the campaign in opposition to the ballot measure. Representatives, senators, and some faith leaders opposed the amendment. The ACLU and Planned Parenthood, among other large organizations, also opposed the amendment, and contributed large campaign contributions up to the election. Planned Parenthood organizations nationwide, spent a total of nearly $2 million, in campaign contributions opposing Amendment 1, while the ACLU donated $135,000 in opposition.^[3]

State Senator Roy Herron said, "Their pitch is that this would make the constitution neutral on abortion. How would they like the Constitution neutral on the Second Amendment so legislators could outlaw the right to bear arms? How about making the First Amendment neutral?"

Nashville-based, statewide newspaper, The Tennessean, also opposed this amendment, stating, "Making any type of law immune from a court challenge is shortsighted, prejudicial — and in the case of what should be a woman's own decision about her health — downright dangerous. For those reasons, The Tennessean recommends a vote of no on Amendment 1."

The results for Amendment 1 revealed a significant urban-rural divide across Tennessee. While major urban centers showed the most concentrated opposition to the measure, the amendment found its strongest support in the rural regions of the state. Specifically, the band of rural counties located between the Nashville and Memphis metropolitan areas. Similarly, East Tennessee remained a stronghold for the "Yes" vote, with the exceptions of Knox and Hamilton counties, which saw higher levels of opposition than their more rural neighbors.^[10] Notably, the only rural counties to vote in opposition were Haywood and Hickman in West Tennessee and Houston in Middle Tennessee; at the time these areas were characterized as ancestral Democratic strongholds where some Democrats continued to hold local offices.^[11]

The geographic split was further defined by the influence of suburban and exurban counties. In Shelby and Davidson counties, the "No" vote defeated "Yes" by a 64–36 margin; however, these two population centers accounted for only 27% of the statewide electorate.^[12] The amendment's success was heavily bolstered by the six suburban counties surrounding Nashville—including Williamson, which had the state's highest turnout at 44.6%—which together provided approximately 40% of the statewide "Yes" margin. Despite the "No" campaign outspending the "Yes" side by a 3-to-1 margin in the final month, the measure passed amid a low-turnout midterm environment where grassroots and church-based mobilization in rural areas proved decisive.^[13]

Political analysts noted that because the 2014 gubernatorial and U.S. Senate races were largely non-competitive, the amendment became the primary driver for "true believer" voters who may not have otherwise participated in the midterm. Experts suggested the amendment might not have passed in a higher-turnout presidential election year where the electorate is typically more left-leaning.^[14] Notably, this amendment had more votes cast than the governor and Senate election.^[15]

• 2014 Tennessee elections