A Missouri judge recently ruled that an abortion-rights campaign did not meet the legal requirements to qualify for the November ballot, potentially halting efforts to overturn the state’s near-total abortion ban. However, the judge did not remove the measure from the ballot, giving the campaign a chance to appeal before the deadline. The campaign plans to appeal and hopes for a swift resolution so that Missourians can vote to protect reproductive freedom.
The judge stated that the campaign did not adequately inform voters that the measure would undo the state’s abortion ban during the signature-gathering process. While the judge’s ruling has postponed issuing an injunction until 2024, other states are also considering constitutional amendments enshrining abortion rights.
At least nine other states will consider amendments guaranteeing a right to abortion until fetal viability and later for the health of the pregnant woman, similar to the Missouri proposal. Voters in states that have had abortion questions on their ballots since 2022 have sided with abortion-rights supporters.
A group of abortion opponents had sued to have the Missouri amendment removed from the ballot, arguing that voters would not have signed the petition if they had known about all the laws that could potentially be repealed. Legal challenges and debates over the impact of the proposed amendment continue, with abortion-rights advocates arguing for the protection of reproductive rights in the state of Missouri.
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