Voters in ten states were asked this election cycle if they want to enshrine the right to abortion into their state constitution.
Out of ten states, seven states decided to vote in favor of pro-abortion measures, while three states rejected them. The losses broke the pro-abortion lobby’s winning streak, which began in the 2022 midterms following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. The pro-abortion wins set a new challenge for the pro-life movement, which will continue working to change how the culture views life in the womb.
Ballot measures are particularly effective as an offensive weapon because they are basically irreversible — they change a state constitution, take precedence over laws passed by state legislatures, and can only be overturned by another ballot measure or lengthy legal battles. The abortion measures are typically propped up by left-wing organizations and affiliates with deep pockets — such as Planned Parenthood and the ACLU — out-of-state dark money groups, and billionaires with eugenicist leanings, oftentimes outspending pro-life organizations by double or triple.
Every other pro-abortion-related ballot measure since the fall of Roe has been successful. During the 2022 special elections, Kansans rejected a ballot measure that would have established that the state Constitution does not include a right to abortion. During the 2022 midterms, voters in California, Michigan, and Vermont codified abortion into their Constitutions. At the same time, voters in Montana rejected a ballot measure that would have given rights to babies born alive in botched abortions. Voters in Kentucky also rejected an amendment similar to the one in Kansas. Last November, Ohioans also voted to codify the supposed right to abortion in their state Constitution via Issue 1.
States That Rejected Abortion Measures
Florida
Florida became the first state to reject a pro-abortion amendment since the fall of Roe, which had invented a constitutional right to abortion for 50 years.
In Florida, proposed constitutional amendments must achieve 60 percent support to pass. The ballot measure, called Amendment 4, fell just short of passage, with 57 percent voting in support and 43 percent voting against, data from The Washington Post shows.
Amendment 4, was backed by Floridians Protecting Freedom — a coalition of left-wing groups including Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Florida.
The abortion amendment would have undone the state’s six-week limit and basically create a permanent right to abortion in the state that could have only been undone with another ballot measure or an uphill legal battle. The abortion measure also essentially allowed for abortions throughout pregnancy under certain conditions.
Amendment 4 would have barred the state from restricting abortion before viability, approximately 24 weeks, or later in pregnancy “as determined by the patient’s healthcare provider.”
It reads:
No law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the patient’s health, as determined by the patient’s healthcare provider. This amendment does not change the Legislature’s constitutional authority to require notification to a parent or guardian before a minor has an abortion.
The passage of the amendment would have likely made Florida an abortion destination state, with states in the surrounding region significantly restricting abortion early in pregnancy.
South Dakota
South Dakota overwhelmingly rejected an abortion measure called Amendment G, which only needed a simple majority to pass. Voters rejected the measure 59.5 percent to 40.5 percent, data shows.
The proposed amendment, which was put forward by the group Dakotans for Health, would have allowed abortions during the first trimester of pregnancy and would have only allowed the state to regulate abortion in the second trimester in ways related to the physical health of the pregnant woman. The amendment would allow abortion to be regulated or prohibited in the third trimester, except when necessary to preserve “the life or health” of the mother.
Amendment G read:
Before the end of the first trimester, the State may not regulate a pregnant woman’s abortion decision and its effectuation, which must be left to the judgment of the pregnant woman.
After the end of the first trimester and until the end of the second trimester, the State may regulate the pregnant woman’s abortion decision and its effectuation only in ways that are reasonably related to the physical health of the pregnant woman.
After the end of the second trimester, the State may regulate or prohibit abortion, except when abortion is necessary, in the medical judgment of the woman’s physician, to preserve the life or health of the pregnant woman.
The measure would have wiped out South Dakota’s current pro-life law, which restricts abortion except to “preserve the life of the pregnant female.”
Nebraska
Nebraska had two dueling abortion measures on the ballot: one that would have enshrined throughout pregnancy with some exceptions into the state constitution, and one that essentially enshrines the current 12-week restriction, while allowing for lawmakers to change the law in the future.
Voters ultimately chose to enshrine the current restriction with Initiative 434 and rejected the more radical abortion measure, called Initiative 439.
The measures were competing, meaning if voters somehow approved both amendments, only the one that garnered the most “for” votes would be adopted. Either measure needed a majority to pass, as well as the support of 35 percent of voters casting ballots.
Initiative 434 received 55.3 percent support, while 44.7 percent voted against it, data shows. At the same time, 51.3 percent voted against the radical abortion measure and 48.7 percent voted for it.
Initiative 434 enshrines the state’s current 12-week restriction into the state constitution and contains exceptions for rape, incest, and life of the mother. Republican Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen signed a bill in May 2023 that restricts abortion at 12 weeks of pregnancy and outlaws “gender-affirming care” for minors. Before the 12-week limit was in effect, Nebraska limited abortions to 20 weeks of pregnancy.
The ballot measure reads:
Except when a woman seeks an abortion necessitated by a medical emergency or when the pregnancy results from sexual assault or incest, unborn children shall be protected from abortion in the second and third trimesters.
Nebraska Family Alliance, which supported the measure, noted that the amendment “establishes a floor of protection, not a ceiling, meaning preborn children must, at a minimum, be protected by the second trimester, and stronger pro-life laws could still be passed going forward.”
The other proposed amendment would allow abortions until fetal viability, which is around 24 weeks of pregnancy, and then throughout pregnancy under some exceptions. The coalition behind the measure is called the Protect Our Rights campaign, and is endorsed by groups like the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Nebraska and Planned Parenthood Advocates of Nebraska.
The measure would amend the state constitution to read:
All persons shall have a fundamental right to abortion until fetal viability, or when needed to protect the life or health of the pregnant patient, without interference from the state or its political subdivisions. Fetal viability means the point in pregnancy when, in the professional judgment of the patient’s treating health care practitioner, there is a significant likelihood of the fetus’ sustained survival outside the uterus without the application of extraordinary medical measures.
States That Passed Abortion Measures
Missouri
Missouri voters narrowly passed a broadly-worded amendment which will turn the pro-life state into an abortion hub.
The measure, called Amendment 3, passed 51.7 percent to 48.3 percent, data shows. The amendment needed 50.1 percent support to pass.
Abortion is currently outlawed in Missouri, except for in medical emergencies or to save a woman’s life. The abortion amendment will undo the state’s abortion restriction.
Amendment 3 will allow abortion until fetal viability, which is generally considered to be around 24 weeks of pregnancy. The amendment also permits abortions after that if “in the good faith judgment of a treating health care professional [an abortion] is needed to protect the life or physical or mental health of the pregnant person.”
The measure also states:
The Government shall not deny or infringe upon a person’s fundamental right to reproductive freedom, which is the right to make and carry out decision about all matters relating to reproductive health care, including but not limited to prenatal care, childbirth, postpartum care, birth control, abortion care, miscarriage care, and respectful birthing conditions.
…
The right to reproductive freedom shall not be denied, interfered with, delayed, or otherwise restricted unless the Government demonstrates that such actions is justified by a compelling governmental interest achieved by the least restrictive means. Any detail, interference, delay, or restriction of the right to reproductive freedom shall be presumed invalid.
The measure further states that no person “shall be penalized, prosecuted, or otherwise subjected to adverse action based on their actual, potential, perceived, or alleged pregnancy outcomes, including but not limited to miscarriage, stillbirth, or abortion.”
“Nor shall any person assisting a person in exercising their right to reproductive freedom with person’s consent be penalized, prosecuted, or otherwise subjected to adverse action for doing so,” the measure reads.
The group behind the measure is Missourians for Constitutional Freedom, which is comprised of left-wing groups, including Abortion Action Missouri, the ACLU of Missouri, and the state’s Planned Parenthood affiliates.
Missouri will join its neighbors, Kansas and Illinois, in having laws that allow abortions until viability and throughout pregnancy in certain circumstances.
Out-of-state abortions in Missouri would also likely increase — as they have in Kansas in Illinois — as several states next to Missouri have laws restricting abortion throughout pregnancy with limited exceptions, including Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Tennessee. Nearby states Nebraska and Iowa also limit abortions — Iowa has a six-week restriction and Nebraska has a 12-week restriction, which was upheld through this election cycle through a ballot measure.
Arizona
Arizona voters passed an amendment that will enshrine the right to abortion throughout pregnancy into the state constitution and undo the current 15-week restriction.
The measure, called Proposition 139, passed with 61.7 percent support, while 38.3 percent voted against, data shows. The measure only needed a simple majority to pass.
The measure was put forward by Arizona for Abortion Access — a coalition of groups including ACLU of Arizona, Affirm Sexual and Reproductive Health, Arizona List, Healthcare Rising Arizona, NARAL Arizona, and Planned Parenthood Advocates of Arizona.
The measure will amendment the Arizona constitution to declare that “every individual has a fundamental right to abortion” and bars the state from doing anything that:
Denies, restricts, or interferes with that right before fetal viability unless justified by a compelling state interest that is achieved by the least restrictive means.
Denies, restricts, or interferes with an abortion after fetal viability that, in the good faith judgment of a treating health care professional, is necessary to protect the life or physical or mental health of the pregnant individual.
Penalizes any individual or entity for aiding or assisting a pregnant individual in exercising that individual’s right to abortion as provided in this section.
Abortion is currently restricted in Arizona after 15 weeks of pregnancy, which is when an unborn baby is believed to be capable of feeling pain. The law contains exceptions for life of the mother and serious medical emergencies.
The Arizona Supreme Court allowed a near-total abortion ban from 1864 to go into effect over the 15-week restriction in April. However, Democrat Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs quickly signed a bill repealing the law on May 2.
Montana
Montanans voted to enshrine a 1999 state Supreme Court ruling that said the constitutional right to privacy protects the right to a pre-viability abortion by a provider of the patient’s choice.
The measure, called CI-128, would allow for abortions throughout pregnancy, per the judgment of a doctor to protect a woman’s life or health and would prevent the government from penalizing anyone involved in their own or another’s voluntary decision to have an abortion.
The state passed the amendment 57.2 percent to 42.8 percent, data shows. The measure only needed a simple majority to pass.
The measure states:
CI-128 would amend the Montana Constitution to expressly provide a right to make and carry out decisions about one’s own pregnancy, including the right to abortion. It would prohibit the government from denying or burdening the right to abortion before fetal viability. It would also prohibit the government from denying or burdening access to an abortion when a treating healthcare professional determines it is medically indicated to protect the pregnant patient’s life or health. CI-128 prevents the government from penalizing patients, healthcare providers, or anyone who assists someone in exercising their right to make and carry out voluntary decisions about their pregnancy.
The coalition behind the ballot measure is comprised of pro-abortion groups including Planned Parenthood of Montana, ACLU of Montana, Forward Montana, and Fairness Project.
The effort comes after Montanans voted against an amendment in 2022 that would have mandated that infants who are born alive, including those who survive botched abortions, are legal persons entitled to life-saving medical care.
Abortion is currently legal in Montana up to fetal viability, which is the stage of pregnancy when a baby has developed enough that it is able to survive outside the womb with medical intervention — typically around 22 to 24 weeks.
Colorado
Colorado is already one of nine states as well as Washington, DC, that has no restrictions on abortion, meaning unborn babies can be legally aborted throughout pregnancy.
Voters passed an amendment that goes a step further, codifying an unfettered right to abortion throughout pregnancy into the state constitution and opening the door to taxpayer-funded abortions.
The measure, called Amendment 79, passed 61.5 percent to 38.5 percent, data shows. The amendment needed the support of 55 percent of voters to pass.
Amendment 79 was put forward by the group Coloradans for Protecting Reproductive Freedom and is endorsed by far-left groups and abortion giant Planned Parenthood.
The amendment ultimately enshrines the right to unlimited abortion in the state constitution and would also override a 1984 measure that prohibits health insurance from covering abortions for public employees and those on public insurance.
Colorado ballots read:
Shall there be a change to the Colorado constitution recognizing the right to abortion, and, in connection therewith, prohibiting the state and local governments from denying, impeding, or discriminating against the exercise of that right, allowing abortion to be a covered service under health insurance plans for Colorado state and local government employees and for enrollees in state and local governmental insurance programs?
The official text of the measure states:
The right to abortion is hereby recognized. Government shall not deny, impede, or discriminate against the exercise of that right, including prohibiting health insurance coverage for abortion.
Maryland
Maryland is another one of nine states, as well as Washington, DC, that have no restrictions on abortion, meaning babies can be legally aborted throughout pregnancy.
Maryland voters passed an an amendment, called Question 1, to enshrine their status as one of America’s most pro-abortion states. The measure passed 74.1 percent to 25.9 percent, and needed only a simple majority to pass, data shows.
Question 1, states:
That every person, as a central component of an individual’s rights to liberty and equality, has the fundamental right to reproductive freedom, including but not limited to the ability to make and effectuate decisions to prevent, continue, or end one’s own pregnancy. The state may not, directly or indirectly, deny, burden, or abridge the right unless justified by a compelling state interest achieved by the least restrictive means.
Maryland lawmakers voted in March of 2023 to place an abortion ballot measure in front of voters in November of 2024.
While there are not many abortion clinics that perform late-term abortions, Abortion Finder, a pro-abortion resource backed by Planned Parenthood and the National Abortion Federation, estimates that there are as many as eight that perform abortions after 28 weeks.
One is located in Maryland and allegedly performs abortions at up to 35 weeks and six days — approximately a day short of being considered the beginning of the ninth month of pregnancy.
New York
Unlike other states, the amendment in New York centers around discrimination and enshrines protections, not just for abortion, but for “gender identity and gender expression” into the state constitution.
New York voters passed the Equal Rights Amendment, also called Proposal 1, 61.8 percent to 38.2 percent, data shows. The measure needed a simple majority to pass.
New York Democrats passed the Equal Rights Amendment for the second time last year, giving it the green light to go before voters in November.
Proposal 1 states:
No person shall be denied the equal protection of the laws of this state or any subdivision thereof. No person shall, because of race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, creed, religion, or sex, including sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive healthcare and autonomy, be subjected to any discrimination in their civil rights by any other person or by any firm, corporation, or institution, or by the state or any agency or subdivision of the state, pursuant to law.
Nothing in this section shall invalidate or prevent the adoption of any law, regulation, program, or practice that is designed to prevent or dismantle discrimination on the basis of a characteristic listed in this section, nor shall any characteristic listed in this section be interpreted to interfere with, limit, or deny the civil rights of any person based upon any other characteristic identified in this section.
Opponents of the measure warned that the proposed amendment would enshrine the right for males to play on female sports teams in public schools — a claim deemed “mostly true” by left-leaning fact-checkers.
In New York, abortion is currently legal up to 24 weeks of pregnancy and after 24 weeks if a woman’s health is at risk.
Nevada
Nevada voters passed an amendment that would create a constitutional right to abortion in the state. The proposed measure had to pass with a simple majority this year and must pass again in 2026 before being added to the constitution, per state law.
The measure, called Question 6, passed 63.2 percent to 36.8 percent, data shows.
Question 6 would allow abortions until “fetal viability” for any reason, which is around 22 to 24 weeks of pregnancy. It would allow abortions throughout pregnancy “when necessary to protect the health or life of the pregnant individual.” It reads:
Should the Nevada Constitution be amended to create an individual’s fundamental right to an abortion, without interference by state or local governments, whenever the abortion is performed by a qualified healthcare professional until fetal viability or when necessary to protect the health or life of the pregnant individual at any point during the pregnancy?
According to the Nevada Secretary of State, a “no” vote would keep the state constitution in its current form and “would not impact the availability of abortion as a statutory right under Nevada law.”
In Nevada, a statute was upheld through a referendum vote in 1990 allowing abortion through 24 weeks of pregnancy. The law allows abortions throughout pregnancy when the life of the mother is in danger or for health reasons.
Katherine Hamilton is a political reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow her on X @thekat_hamilton.
