Ten US states voted Tuesday on constitutional amendments to guarantee abortion rights. Voters from seven states approved, with three rejecting the amendments.
New York, Missouri, Colorado, Arizona, Nevada, Maryland, and Montana, all passed amendments that will ensure the right to an abortion up to the point of fetal viability. In contrast, voters in Florida, Nebraska, and South Dakota rejected similar amendments. These three states have varied abortion access levels currently. Nebraska allows access to an abortion up to 12 weeks, Florida up to six weeks, and South Dakota maintains one of the strictest abortion bans in the country, only allowing abortions in life-threatening situations, with no exceptions for health, or pregnancies resulting from rape or incest.
Missouri had one of the largest shifts in policy Tuesday night, overturning an abortion ban. The Missourians for Constitutional Freedom took to X to celebrate the win:
Just minutes after the Dobbs decision, Missouri was the first state in the country to enact a total ban on abortion. Tonight, we as Missourians have made history by becoming the first state to end a total abortion ban and protect reproductive freedom at the ballot box!
In June 2022, the US Supreme Court held that the US Constitution does not protect the right to abortion, overturning the landmark Roe v. Wade decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. Since then, 21 states have implemented a total or nearly total abortion ban, which Amnesty International described as creating a “human rights and healthcare crisis” throughout the US.
Following the election results, some groups voiced concerns about potential implications for women’s rights and healthcare access across the country. President-elect Donald Trump’s stance on abortion has become more reserved in recent months, distancing himself from allegations of a proposed national abortion ban. The only discussion of abortion on his platform page states:
We proudly stand for families and Life. We believe that the 14th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States guarantees that no person can be denied Life or Liberty without Due Process, and that the States are, therefore, free to pass Laws protecting those Rights. After 51 years, because of us, that power has been given to the States and to a vote of the People. We will oppose Late Term Abortion, while supporting mothers and policies that advance Prenatal Care, access to Birth Control, and IVF (fertility treatments).
In October, First Lady Melania Trump similarly said: “Individual freedom is a fundamental principle that I safeguard. Without a doubt, there is no room for compromise when it comes to the essential right that all women possess from birth. Individual freedom.”
Abortion is still currently illegal in 12 states but faces restrictions in many others.
