Voters in Ohio will likely decide if the state’s constitution should enshrine the right to abortion care, after abortion rights advocates collected tens of thousands of signatures on a petition to put the issue on ballots this fall. If certified, those 710,000 signatures – roughly 300,000 more than required by state law – will place a proposed constitutional amendment asking whether “every individual has a right to make and carry out one’s reproductive decisions.” A statewide vote for abortion protections follows a wave of anti-abortion laws in the aftermath of the US Supreme Court’s decision to strike down a constitutional right to care last year. More than a dozen states, mostly across the entire US South, have effectively outlawed most abortions. But the Supreme Court decision to overturn the half-century precedent under Roe v Wade also fuelled efforts to protect abortion rights across the country, including in neighboring Michigan and Kentucky, where voters in both states voted to support abortion rights in ballot measures last year. After the Supreme Court’s ruling, Ohio lawmakers swiftly outlawed most abortion after roughly six weeks of pregnancy, a law that is currently suspended by a state court injunction but could be reinstated by the Ohio Supreme Court. A vote to enshrine abortion rights in the state’s constitution would effectively overrule any such law. Abortion rights advocates and providers have warned that Ohio’s ban, which does not include exceptions for pregnancies from rape or incest, ignited a healthcare crisis that endangered patients and their families across the state, forcing people to seek care hundreds of miles out of state and navigate complicated legal and medical minefields while experiencing pregnancy complications. The petition launched by Ohioans for Reproductive Freedom and Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights will head to the secretary of state, which has until 25 July to determine the validity of the signatures. The campaign launched with an open letter on 7 July of last year signed by hundreds of physicians rejecting the state’s anti-abortion law. “Over the past year, support for the amendment has grown exponentially thanks to our partners at [Ohioans for Reproductive Freedom], the thousands of volunteers who gathered signatures in communities across the state, and the hundreds of thousands of people who added their names to our petitions,” according to a statement from Dr Lauren Beene and Dr Marcela Azevedo, co-founders of Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights. “Today, the message we and they are sending is loud and clear: ‘let the people decide,’” they said. The campaign will magnify the role of Ohio – a state that voted for Donald Trump by more than 8 percentage points over Joe Biden in 2020 – in the 2024 presidential campaign and the renewed battle for abortion rights surrounding it, as Republican candidates and members of Congress weigh federal legislation that would outlaw or severely restrict abortion access nationwide. President Biden and Democratic candidates have signalled the central role that abortion rights protections will play in upcoming campaigns, alongside their warnings of a GOP-controlled White House and Congress legislating on abortion at the national level. Last year, a record number of voters in Kansas – a state that Mr Biden lost by more than 15 percentage points in 2020 – turned out for an election to reject a Republican-drafted amendment that would strip abortion rights from the state’s constitution, the first test for abortion rights put directly to voters after the ruling in Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization. That measure was shot down by nearly 20 percentage points, sending a resounding message that underscored the immense unpopularity of the Supreme Court’s decision. The president has repeatedly invoked that election victory in remarks supporting abortion rights in the months that followed, stating that the Supreme Court “practically dared women in this country to go to the ballot box and restore the right to choose,” and that anti-abortion lawmakers vastly underestimated how Americans would respond. Following the outcome in Kansas, Mr Biden pointed to the justices’ own writing in the Dobbs decision: “Women are not without electoral or political power.” “They don’t have a clue about the power of American women,” he said. “In Kansas, they found out women and men did exercise their electoral political power with a record turnout.” Read More Man sentenced to life in prison for rape of 10-year-old girl in Ohio abortion case that drew national attention Senator who once worked at a Planned Parenthood warns that Republicans are planning a national abortion ban One year after Roe v Wade fell, anti-abortion laws threaten millions. The battle for access is far from over

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Blake Lively has been widely praised for the bold look she wore to mark her return to New York Fashion Week. The actor has been a mainstay at fashion events throughout her career, from attending runway shows to wowing fans with her ensembles on the red carpet. On Monday (11 September), the former Gossip Girl star further cemented her credentials as a style icon while attending the Michael Kors Spring 2024 show at Domino Park, Brooklyn. Lively, 36, wore a flared, floor-length nude jumpsuit with gold sequins, completed with a narrow beige belt. Her hair was styled in curls with a centre part, and she kept her accessories simple with a few statement rings and hooped earrings. In photos from the event, Lively is seen sitting front row beside former Grey’s Anatomy star Ellen Pompeo. Lively’s disco aesthetic was fitting with the late Sixties and early Seventies theme of the Spring 2024 show. Her attention to detail did not go unnoticed by fans “Gold was inspired by Blake Lively,” one person wrote on Twitter/X, while another crowned her the “ultimate disco queen”. In May, the A Simple Favor star skipped attending the Met Gala, an event she is usually a reliable presence at and co-chaired in 2022. After confirming her absence, she shared an Instagram Story revealing that she spent the evening pumping breast milk. Lively gave birth to her fourth child with fellow screen star Ryan Reynolds in February. Their elder daughters were born in December 2014, September 2016 and October 2019. Speaking to ET Canada in April, Reynolds, 46, spoke about expanding their family and the difference between having four children. “You know, two to three was a huge jump…three to four less so,” he said. “I cannot speak for my wife, but it’s just from what I’ve observed. But, we love it. You know, we would be idiots to do this again if we didn’t love it.” Lively’s next on-screen project will be the highly anticipated adaptation of the bestselling Colleen Hoover novel It Ends With Us. When the first pictures from behind the scenes spread online in May, fans were divided on their thoughts on whether Lively and co-star Justin Baldoni looked like the lead characters they’d envisioned. Read More Sarah Burton to leave Alexander McQueen after 13 years as creative director Breakfast at Burberry’s: Fashion house launches collaboration with London café How Burberry evolved from humble raincoat maker to luxury fashion giant Young people not snowflakes or wasters, says curator of rebellious fashion exhibition Sarah Burton to leave Alexander McQueen after 13 years as creative director Heidi Klum hints at her ‘really extra’ 2023 Halloween costume: ‘Going to be good’

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Who doesn’t yearn for a more Mediterranean lifestyle every now and then? Whether or not a getaway is on the cards this summer however, bringing those dreamy holiday vibes home with a style update is easier than you might think. “Pulling together a Mediterranean-inspired coastal scheme is all about perfecting an airy, bright feeling through the use of colour and material that harks back to ocean shores,” says Rohan Blacker, founder of Pooky. “A palette of cool blues and pared-back neutrals introduces a breath of fresh air into the home, and when paired with natural materials, it works to create this slightly bohemian beachside feeling.” Consider rustic rattan lamps, paired with beautiful linen shades in muted seascape tones too, Blacker suggests. Organic raffia pendant designs also make easy additions, which will allow you to incorporate elements of a sunny coastal scheme through lighting changes alone. Helen Pett, Arteriors design ambassador, says: “When looking at furniture and lighting design, opt for statement pieces crafted with woven rattan or open-weave detailing, materials such as coconut shell or wooden beading. “Alternatively, a timeless colour choice for any coastal destination-inspired décor scheme introduces a pleasant combination of varying blues to mimic a summer sky, and the reflective surface of the sea,” she adds. Here’s how to get the look… 1. Picnicware – Set of 4 Dinner Plates, £20, Next Summer salads and slow days call for lightweight tableware, especially eye-catching designs like this, with a shiny finish to look and feel just so. 2. Seashells Jug, £17.95, Annabel James She sells seashells on the seashore… this beautiful bone china jug is worth shelling out for. 3. Pooky Aphrodite Pendants, from £200 (other items from a selection/part of room set), Pooky Featuring an artisan woven effect and brass accents, these hanging pendants are right on point. 4. Maze Rope Decorative Tray, £15, Dunelm Favourite finds such as this woven tray imbibe thoughts of freshly baked bread at breakfast, topped with exotic fruit platters. 5. Hugh 4 Seater Sofa – Calix Boucle, Ivory, £949; matching Large Square Footstool, £399, and Tarland Pattern Accent Chair – Kirkton Floral, Duck Egg, £799 (items part of room set), DFS A sumptuous sofa like this makes a wonderful centrepiece, especially styled with mosaic print cushions, ocean blues and rattan accessories, for an airy, breezy aesthetic. 6. Abigail Ahern Elian Recycled Glass Table Lamp, £149, Freemans Contemporary and cool, this clear recycled glass lamp with raffia shade will style up any space. 7. Collection Luxe Josie Frame in Wood and Cane, from £850, Next A beautiful base to build around, this carved wood and cane bedframe – especially teamed with a jute carpet, ocean hues and sheer white curtains – is tailor-made for hot, sultry nights. 8. George Blue Arc Tufted Throw, currently £12 (was £15), Direct.asda The finishing touch to dressing the bed à la Med? A tufted blue throw strewn across crisp linen sheets. 9. Indigo Seaweed Print Wall Art, from £18 each (unframed), Beach House Art Beachcombers will be drawn to these pretty artwork prints. 10. Mediterranean 594 Evora Vinyl, from £24.99 per square metre, Carpetright (available early July) Suitable for kitchen, dining and bathroom schemes, this modish motif makes a real feature. 11. George Wooden Lounge Chair – Cream Rope (top), £99, and Wooden Lounge Chair – Cream Cross Straps, £99, Direct.asda These accent chairs with woven rope design or cream straps will style up your suntrap and bring smiles all round. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Whiten up your wardrobe with summer’s hottest trends Paternity leave should be paid for six weeks, campaigners tell Government My teenager gets all their news from TikTok – should I worry?

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The day after the state’s Republican governor signed the ban into law, a judge in South Carolina has blocked a measure outlawing abortion at roughly six weeks of pregnancy. Abortion rights advocates and civil rights groups filed a lawsuit moments after Governor Henry McMaster announced his signature on the bill. South Carolina’s latest law – which could extend the sweeping restrictions and outright bans on abortion care across the entire US South, and threaten legal access to care for millions of Americans – is nearly identical to a bill that was blocked by the state Supreme Court last year. The decision on Friday means the state’s abortion regulations revert to previous rules that allow for abortion care up until about 20 weeks after after fertilization. “The status quo should be maintained until the Supreme Court reviews its decision,” Judge Clifton Newman said. “It’s going to end up there.” His decision on 26 May comes just four months after the state’s Supreme Court permanently struck down a similar measure, which the court determined ran afoul of the state’s constitution. Restrictions on abortion care “must be reasonable and it must be meaningful in that the time frames imposed must afford a woman sufficient time to determine she is pregnant and to take reasonable steps to terminate that pregnancy,” Justice Kaye Hearn wrote in the majority opinion on 5 January. More than a dozen states, mostly in the South, have outlawed most abortions or severely restricted access within the year after the Supreme Court’s ruling in Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which revoked a constitutional right to abortion care that was affirmed by the decision in Roe v Wade for nearly half a century. South Carolina remains the only state south of Virginia without severe restrictions or outright bans on abortion care past the 12th week of pregnancy. Most of those states have moved to ban abortion in nearly all cases with limited or no exceptions. Last year, lawmakers in South Carolina failed to adopt an anti-abortion law that would ban nearly all abortions in the state, but a six-week ban took effect shortly after the Supreme Court’s ruling on 24 June. In a statement following the governor’s signature on the latest six-week ban, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre lambasted Republican lawmakers who are “dismantling women’s rights across the South, putting their health and lives in jeopardy. “ South Carolina’s ban will cut off access to abortion for women in the state and those across the entire region for whom South Carolina is their closest option for care,” she added. This is a developing story Read More North Carolina Republicans approve 12-week abortion ban as sweeping restrictions spread across US South Senator who voted for anti-trans bill that passed by one vote admits she wasn’t paying attention From the Civil War to today's mattress sales, Memorial Day is full of contradiction GOP leaders in Kansas back off threat to sue Democratic governor over education funding DeSantis pushes past embarrassing campaign start, outlines travel schedule for early state visits

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The world wasn’t ready when Supergoop! launched Unseen Sunscreen back in 2018. The formula was everything we knew a sunscreen not to be: For starters, it was clear and gel-like, not optic white, thick, and made to break you out. There was no detectable scent, and it disappeared into skin leaving behind only an invisible shield from UV rays. Five years later, the beloved SPF brand is coming for all of our necks…and arms…and legs…because Supergoop! is launching a body version of Unseen Sunscreen, people, and we got the exclusive first scoop.