Opponents and supporters provide final arguments on CI-128 in Montana

BILLINGS — Opponents and supporters of CI-128, Montana's abortion rights measure, are making their final arguments before election night on Tuesday.

The initiative is likely to be the most controversial election this year. If passed, CI-128 would amend the Montana Constitution and protect the option of abortion.

Montanans, both supporters and opponents of the initiative, have held last-minute events across the state to influence voters.

In Billings, Bailey Desper has been standing near the intersection of Broadwater Avenue and Division Street for several days, holding a sign in support of CI-128.

“I just want to make it visible and get people to go to the polls,” Desper said Monday morning. “It’s really important to me because Roe v. Wade was the law of the land for 50 years, and after it was repealed, over 10 states banned abortion entirely. CI-128 aims to protect that at the state level, and that's what we're doing. “Women's rights are really necessary.”

Desper said she believes even a single person like herself standing on the street corner waving to traffic can make a difference.

“It shouldn’t be up to an individual or a government to make that decision for them,” Desper said. “That’s what CI-128 is designed to prevent.”

In Helena, a large rally was held on the steps of the state Capitol over the weekend to oppose the initiative.

“CI-128 is not in the best interest of female children or families,” a speaker at the rally said. “We need to get the facts straight.”

Attorney Derek Oestreicher is senior counsel for the Montana Family Foundation, a leading opponent of the initiative. Oestreicher was at the event in Helena and said passing the initiative would not be good for Montanans.

“If you vote yes on CI-128, you are voting for a radical expansion of abortion up to the point of birth,” Oestreicher said. “This is an abortion of a late-term, pain-capable baby.”

Oestriecher said abortion is legal in Montana and if the initiative passes, it would go too far.

“You have life and death in front of you,” said Oestriecher. “A no vote is a vote for life.”

Both are examples of last-minute campaigns with elections ending on Tuesday, underscoring the importance of voting.

“It’s about giving people a voice,” Desper said. “Your voice is essentially your superpower. What do we have without your voice?”