In New York, a constitutional amendment provides election fodder for the left and the right

Democrats pushed to get a constitutional amendment on New York’s ballot because they believed it could energize liberals eager to protect abortion rights. Republicans are now hoping the same amendment will ignite a fire under people upset about transgender athletes participating in girls’ and women’s sports.

Voters will decide Nov. 5 whether to approve the state’s proposed “Equal Rights Amendment,” which has already been the subject of a court fight over its broad language. The amendment, called “Proposition 1” on the ballot, has emerged as one of the more unusual ideological battles of the 2024 election season, partly because of disagreements about what it will do if passed.

On paper, the proposed amendment would expand a section of the state constitution that now says a person can’t be denied civil rights because of their race, creed or religion. The new language will also ban discrimination based on national origin, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes or “reproductive healthcare and autonomy.”

While much of the news coverage of the amendment has focused on how it might protect abortion rights, Republicans have been running a messaging campaign warning that barring discrimination based on someone’s “gender expression” would create a constitutional right for transgender athletes to play on girls’ sports teams.

“The consequences of the state constitution being amended is drastic,” said Lee Zeldin, a Republican former congressman and gubernatorial candidate who is a leading critic of the amendment.

The leading group opposing the amendment, the Coalition to Protect Kids-NY, has held rallies across the state and put out advertisements against the proposal saying…