Missouri Voters Back Amendment to End Abortion Ban

ST. LOUIS — Missourians voted to legalize abortion up until fetal viability and override the state’s current ban on nearly all abortions, according to a call by the Associated Press.

Legal challenges are expected from anti-abortion groups but if the Tuesday vote stands it will enshrine abortion rights into the constitution over the objections of the heavily Republican state leadership.

Missouri was the first state to ban abortion — even in cases of rape and only with an exception for medical emergencies — after the fall of Roe v. Wade in 2022. Then abortion rights proponents gathered hundreds of thousands of signatures for a vote on the amendment to legalize abortion up to fetal viability, which is around 24 weeks.

While Missouri has become a much more Republican state in the past decade, passage of the amendment wasn’t a surprise. It was in part a reaction to the state’s current law. A campaign committee backing the amendment raised tens of millions of dollars — and signed up thousands of volunteers to knock doors and make phone calls.

Missouri is one of 10 states voting on abortion rights this election.

Support for the measure was especially strong in suburban parts of the state. St. Louis County resident Cindy Clark, interviewed in the run-up to the vote, said the amendment eclipsed the presidential race in driving her to the polls.

“I grew up in a more conservative household, which is where my Republican views came from, but we’re always told that Republicans are the party of limited government,” Clark said. “Well, why are they now invading our doctors offices, invading our classrooms, invading all these nuances in our life? That’s not limited government. To me, that’s government control.”

Opponents of Amendment 3 contended that it would be better for the legislature to make changes to Missouri’s strict abortion laws. They also argued the lengthy amendment would allow transgender care for minors, which legal experts and proponents contended was a scare tactic misrepresenting what the proposal actually does.

Jason Rosenbaum covers politics for St. Louis Public Radio.