Voters in Missouri cleared the way to undo one of the nation’s most restrictive abortion bans in one of five victories Tuesday for abortion rights advocates. Florida, meanwhile, defeated a similar constitutional amendment, leaving in place a law barring most abortions after the first six weeks of pregnancy.
Abortion rights amendments also passed in Arizona, Colorado and Maryland. Nevada voters also approved an amendment, but they’ll need to pass it again in 2026 for it to take effect.
An amendment that bans discrimination on the basis of “pregnancy outcomes” prevailed in New York. A measure that allows more abortion restrictions and enshrines the state’s current 12-week ban was adopted in Nebraska and a competing one to ensure abortion rights failed.
The Missouri and Florida results represent firsts in the abortion landscape, which underwent a seismic shift in 2022 when the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, a ruling that ended a nationwide right to abortion and cleared the way for bans to take effect in most Republican-controlled states.
Democratic Party’s presidential candidate Vice-President Kamala Harris had sought to build support for the ballot measures, which each proposed amending a state’s constitution to enshrine a right to abortion. The Republican Party, led by former president Donald Trump, has opposed the measures.
Until Tuesday, abortion rights advocates had prevailed on all seven measures that have appeared on statewide ballots since the fall of Roe.
Missouri is positioned to be the first state where a vote will undo a ban that is already in place. Currently, abortion is barred at all stages of pregnancy with an exception only when a medical emergency puts the woman’s life at risk. Under the amendment, lawmakers would be able to restrict abortions past the point that a fetus is viable — usually considered after 21 weeks, although there’s no exact defined time frame.
But the ban, and other restrictive laws, are not automatically repealed. Advocates now have to ask courts to overturn laws to square with the new amendment.
“Today, Missourians made history and sent a clear message: decisions around pregnancy, including abortion, birth control and miscarriage care are personal and private and should be left up to patients and their families, not politicians,” Rachel Sweet, campaign manager of Missourians for Constitutional Freedom, said in a statement.
In the U.S. presidential race, voters in Arizona tell CBC’s Jenna Benchetrit how the candidates’ stances on abortion will factor into their decision on election day.
Anti-abortion group celebrates ‘momentous victory’
In Florida, the result is considered a political win for Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, and will keep in place the state’s ban on most abortions after the first six weeks of pregnancy.
Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the national anti-abortion group SBA Pro-Life America, said in a statement that the result is “a momentous victory for life in Florida and for our entire country,” praising DeSantis for leading the charge against the measure.
The measure was polling at 57 per cent approval with 88 per cent of votes tallied late Tuesday, but failed to clear the required 60 per cent voter approval threshold to pass constitutional amendments in Florida. Most states require a simple majority.
“The reality is because of Florida’s constitution, a minority of Florida voters have decided Amendment 4 will not be adopted,” said Lauren Brenzel, campaign director for the Yes on 4 Campaign. “The reality is a majority of Floridians just voted to end Florida’s abortion ban.”
Considered a top issue for many voters
Arizona’s amendment will mean replacing the current law that bans abortion after the first 15 weeks of pregnancy. The new measure ensures abortion access until viability. A ballot measure there gained momentum after a state Supreme Court ruling in April found that the state could enforce a strict abortion ban adopted in 1864. Some Republican lawmakers joined with Democrats to repeal the law before it could be enforced.
In Colorado, the abortion measure exceeded the 55 per cent of support required to pass. Besides enshrining access, it also undoes an earlier amendment that barred using state and local government funding for abortion, opening the possibility of state Medicaid and government employee insurance plans covering care.
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In Maryland, the abortion rights amendment that passed Tuesday is a legal change that won’t make an immediate difference to abortion access in a state that already allows it.
A New York equal rights law that abortion-rights groups say will bolster abortion rights also passed. It doesn’t contain the word “abortion” but rather bans discrimination on the basis of “pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive health care and autonomy.”
Nebraska had competing ballot measures. One would allow abortion further into pregnancy. The other would enshrine in the constitution the state’s current law, which bars most abortions after 12 weeks — but would allow for further restrictions.
In South Dakota, the measure would allow some regulations related to the health of the woman after 12 weeks. Because of that wrinkle, most national abortion-rights groups are not supporting it.
A measure to maintain access was also on the ballot in Montana, but results were still pending.
Currently, 13 states are enforcing bans at all stages of pregnancy, with some exceptions. Four more bar abortion in most cases after about six weeks of pregnancy — before women often realize they’re pregnant. (Pregnancy is counted from the first day of a woman’s last period, not the date of conception, which is later.)
About one-fourth said abortion policy was the single most important factor for their vote, according to Associated Press VoteCast, a sweeping survey of more than 110,000 voters nationwide. Close to half said it was an important factor, but not the most important. Just over one in 10 said it was a minor factor.
‘You should stop talking about that’
The bans also were part of a key argument in the presidential race.
Harris called them “Trump abortion bans,” noting Trump’s role in overturning Roe v. Wade. Harris, meanwhile, has portrayed herself as a direct, consistent advocate for reproductive health and rights, including Black maternal health.
Trump has struggled to thread a divide between his own base of anti-abortion supporters and the majority of Americans who support abortion rights, leaning on his catch-all response that abortion rights should be left up to individual states. His shifting stances on reproductive rights include vowing in October to veto a national abortion ban, just weeks after the presidential debate when he repeatedly declined to say.
Trump also has regularly taken credit for appointing three Supreme Court justices who helped overturn Roe v. Wade.
After voting in Palm Beach, Florida, on Tuesday, Trump was asked twice how he voted on the abortion measure there but he didn’t answer directly. The first time he said he did “a great job bringing it back to the states.” The second time, he snapped at a reporter, saying “You should stop talking about that.”