Oaths and pledges have been routine for political officials. That’s changing in a polarized America

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The resignation letter was short and direct.

“I can no longer be under an oath to uphold the New Constitution of Ohio,” wrote Sabrina Warner in her letter announcing she was stepping down from the state’s Republican central committee.

It was just days after Ohio voters resoundingly approved an amendment last November to the state constitution ensuring access to abortion and other forms of reproductive health care. For many, the vote was a victory after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a constitutional right to abortion in 2022.

For Warner, a staunch abortion opponent, it meant she could no longer stand by the Ohio Constitution she had proudly sworn an oath to uphold just over a year before.

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Throughout modern American history, elected officials have sworn oaths to uphold constitutions and said the Pledge of Allegiance without much controversy. In a handful of cases recently, these routine practices have fallen victim to the same political divisions that have left the country deeply polarized.

Disagreements