California voters have rejected a ballot measure that would require doctors to notify parents before performing an abortion on a minor.
The defeat of Proposition 4 marks the third time in four years that supporters of the measure have failed to limit abortions for teenage girls. The margin of defeat -- 52 percent to 48 percent -- was smaller than previous attempts and supporters say Wednesday they will try again to put the measure on the ballot.
The initiative was similar to laws in 35 states and would also require a two-day waiting period before a minor could get an abortion.
Opponents say Proposition 4 was a thinly disguised attempt to chip away at abortion rights. Proponents of the measure conceded defeat and said it was a "grave injustice" to teenaged girls, vowing to continue to try to get the measure passed by voters.
In California, young and older voters appeared split on Proposition 4, with preliminary exit polls showing voters under 30 heavily opposed to it, while voters 65 and over supported it. Age groups in between were more evenly split.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger supported Proposition 4, while the California Teachers Association opposed it.
Ballot measures to limit or ban abortion were defeated in two other states. In South Dakota, voters rejected an initiative that would ban abortion except in cases of rape, incest and serious health threat to the mother. In Colorado, voters defeated a measure that would have rewritten the constitution to define human life as beginning at conception, which both sides in the campaign viewed as a direct challenge to abortion rights.
