In November, voters in Missouri passed Amendment 3, enshrining abortion rights into the state’s constitution. Before this vote, the Show-Me-State only allowed abortions in cases of medical emergency. The phrasing of the new law did not entirely undo the existing ban, which leaves room for future lawsuits to overturn the ban. The amendment’s passing is a marked step backwards for those hoping to entirely end abortion in the state.
The official wording of the ballot measure was as follows:
A “yes” vote establishes a constitutional right to make decisions about reproductive health care, including abortion and contraceptives, with any governmental interference of that right presumed invalid; removes Missouri's ban on abortion; allows regulation of reproductive health care to improve or maintain the health of the patient; requires the government not to discriminate, in government programs, funding, and other activities, against persons providing or obtaining reproductive health care; and allows abortion to be restricted or banned after Fetal Viability except to protect the life or health of the woman.
A “no” vote will continue the statutory prohibition of abortion in Missouri.
Missouri requires a simple majority to amend its constitution, a requirement that state Republicans had previously attempted to make more challenging. A filibuster by Democrats that lasted 50 hours ended the push to change that threshold. In November, the measure passed by only 95,637 votes, and only eight counties of the 115 in the state voted in support. These counties encompass the Kansas City, St. Louis, and Columbia areas.
While the margin between support and opposition votes was relatively narrow, there was a gulf between the amount of money each side fundraised. Opposition parties raised just under $2,000,000, while support for the amendment raised over $30,000,000. Many states with abortion legislation on the ballot saw large amounts of money poured in to support the propositions, sometimes from outside of the state. In many cases, in spite of the large amounts of fundraising, these amendments passed with razor thin margins.
Now, three months later, state officials are still navigating the abortion issue under the new legal parameters. In late November, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey issued an opinion on the attorney general’s website that outlined the statutes in the ban that can no longer be enforced. However, Bailey clarified the ability to uphold the ban still under specific circumstances. The letter, addressed to Governor Elect Mike Kehoe, concluded, “...permit(s) the Attorney General and other officials to continue enforcing these laws after viability (with some exceptions), when there is no parental consent, and when the woman has been unlawfully pressured.” Bailey also detailed that, if the new amendment was ever to be repealed, the restrictions to abortion would immediately be in effect once again.
Planned Parenthood filed a lawsuit in Missouri less than 24 hours after the voting concluded, and a month later a circuit court judge issued an order blocking the ban’s enforcement. The lawsuit is needed to force a court to rule the original ban invalid. Jackson County Judge Jerri Zhang’s order indicates that, when the lawsuit in progress is through, the ban will likely be deemed legally unenforceable in the majority of circumstances.
In 2025, it is likely Missouri’s legislature will continue revisit the abortion issue. Republicans are likely to seek ways to continue to place as many restrictions on abortion as possible. There has also been talk of putting forth a legislature-proposed amendment on abortion, as opposed to the citizen-proposed initiative petition that created the vote on amendment 3. Democrats in the state continue to frame the amendment as restricting the government’s ability to encroach upon medical care, while Republicans maintain the ban was a protection for the lives of the unborn in Missouri. Out of 10 states that had abortion measures on the ballot last November, 7 states passed laws loosening restrictions on abortion.
