An effort to ask Maine voters to enshrine a right to an abortion in the Maine Constitution failed in the state Senate Monday to gain the votes necessary to make the ballot

And although more votes are needed, the legislation is unlikely to move forward following united Republican opposition to the bill. The Senate voted 20-13, enough votes for initial passage but fewer than the two-thirds necessary for a constitutional amendment.

Sen. Eloise Vitelli (D-Arrowsic) sponsored LD 780, saying in a statement after the vote that the 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision to reverse a federally protected right to an abortion “served as a stark reminder that laws can change.”

Her Reproductive Rights Amendment sought to “enshrine the right to access reproductive health care — including access to abortion, birth control and fertility care — in our constitution.”

Maine is one of a handful of states that expanded abortion access following the 2022 ruling, passing a bill last year to allow women to have abortions later in pregnancy with a doctor’s permission.

In 21 states, abortion is severely restricted or banned since the ruling.

Vitelli’s bill is currently pending in the House, where it is also likely to pass with Democratic support but fall short of the two-thirds needed to go before voters.