Updated November 04, 2024 at 17:50 PM ET
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The national map for abortion access could be about to change as voters in 10 states, with a combined population of more than 75 million people, decide whether to put protections for reproductive rights into their state constitutions.
Two states voting on the issue, Missouri and South Dakota, have near-total abortion bans that could be undone. In Florida, Nebraska and Arizona, where abortion is legal up to six, 12 and 15 weeks, respectively, voters could decide to protect the procedure up to viability, usually about 24 weeks.
Abortion is already legal in Colorado, Maryland, Montana, New York and Nevada, but voters are weighing whether to solidify those rights in the state constitution. It’s a way of defending against attempts to weaken abortion rights by lawmakers in the future.
Since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the federal right to abortion in 2022, states have had the final say on the issue. In some places, that has meant Republican-led state legislatures banning or reducing access to abortion only to see voters go to the polls to support abortion rights.
Getting amendments on the ballot usually requires legwork, gathering tens or hundreds of thousands of signatures. And in many states there have been efforts by abortion rights opponents to block the vote - succeeding in Arkansas. Where it’s stayed on the ballot, there’s been both heavy spending and grassroots campaigning.
Here’s a look at where voters will decide on abortion rights.
Colorado
Colorado doesn’t restrict abortion at any time during pregnancy. That has led to the state becoming a regional hub for abortion access.
Coloradans did use the ballot to impose one limit in 1984 when they passed a constitutional amendment banning public funding for abortions.
The proposal on the ballot now would guarantee a right to abortion in the state constitution - prohibiting laws that impede that right.
The amendment would also remove the current constitutional ban against public funding for abortions — in Medicaid or state employee health plans. The initiative is similar to the state law passed in 2022. It would need 55% of the vote to make it into the constitution.
For more, visit Colorado Public Radio.
Florida
Florida is the most populous state where abortion-rights advocates put the issue on the ballot. Voters there will decide whether to amend the state constitution to protect abortion up to the point of fetal viability — usually about 24 weeks of pregnancy — and, in all cases, to save the life of the pregnant person.
If passed, that would replace the state’s six-week abortion ban with exceptions for rare circumstances, that went into effect in May.
That ban has energized voters on both sides of the issue to come out and vote. But a simple majority won’t be enough. A vote of 60 percent in favor is required to pass the amendment. Florida requires at least 60% approval to pass amendments.
Abortion rights proponents raised over $100 million for the campaign. Opponents have raised $11 million, and have support from Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, whose health agency website said the amendment “threatens women” and whose lawyers tried to stop radio stations from running ads in favor of the amendment.
For more, visit WFSU.
Maryland
Since taking office in 2023, Democratic Gov. Wes Moore has billed Maryland as a “sanctuary state” for reproductive rights. Moore’s administration stockpiled mifepristone — one of two drugs used in medication abortion — when federal court cases threatened the drug’s future, and it has put money into training more health care workers in reproductive care.
Now Maryland voters will decide on an amendment that would enshrine reproductive rights in the state constitution by protecting “the ability to make and effectuate decisions to prevent, continue, or end one’s own pregnancy.” The referendum needs a simple majority to pass and is expected to meet that threshold.
For more, visit WYPR.
New York
The proposed amendment that could enshrine existing abortion rights into the New York state constitution doesn’t mention the word “abortion.” The legislature placed on the ballot an “Amendment to Protect Against Unequal Treatment” that would ban discrimination based on race, gender, age and other categories including, “pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive healthcare and autonomy.”
Movement toward the ballot proposal started in response to the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe vs. Wade in 2022. Some Republican opponents say the amendment is too sweeping and would expand rights for trans people.
New York already allows abortion until fetal viability - around 24 weeks of pregnancy - and has laws protecting reproductive healthcare providers. But there are no such laws in the constitution.
For more, visit WAMC.
South Dakota
After the Dobbs decision ended the federal right to abortion, an already-on-the-books South Dakota law went into effect banning all abortions except to save the life of the pregnant person — an exception critics say is undefined.
South Dakota voters are weighing in on a ballot proposal that would allow abortions in the first trimester, add more restrictions in the second and prohibit abortions in the third trimester, with some exceptions.
Reproductive rights group Dakotans for Health submitted 55,000 signatures in support of the proposal, getting it on the ballot.
Some abortion-rights groups say the amendment is too weak, while an anti-abortion group has called it “extreme.”
But the question has been challenged in the courts, which could step in after the vote.
For more, visit South Dakota Public Broadcasting.
Arizona
Arizona was in the national spotlight this spring when a court ruled that the state should enforce a law on the books from 1864 that banned abortion except to save the life of the pregnant person. The Legislature narrowly voted to overturn the near-total ban, which re-imposed the state’s current 15-week ban on abortions.
Now Arizona voters are deciding on a ballot measure that would enshrine the right to abortion in the state constitution. The Arizona Secretary of State’s office said in August it had certified nearly 578,000 signatures supporting the ballot measure.
The measure, Proposition 139, would allow abortions until the point of fetal viability – around 24 weeks - with broad exceptions later in pregnancy when health risks are involved.
Opponents say the ballot measure goes too far.
For more, visit KJZZ.
Arkansas
Abortion did not make it to the ballot in Arkansas – kept off over the question of whether advocates correctly proved they gave paid petition canvassers the required state materials.
Secretary of State John Thurston objected to counting some 15,000 signatures among the approximately 101,000 advocates said they had collected. That left the effort short of the 90,704 needed.
The signatures in question were collected by paid canvassers, which is allowed. But Thurston said the abortion rights sponsors did not correctly complete paperwork showing that the canvassers had received materials and instruction on state canvassing laws and procedures.
In August, the state supreme court backed Thurston - though The Arkansas Times reported that documents turned over in a public records request indicated that procedures were followed.
Arkansas' ban on abortion is one of the most restrictive in the country, making an exception only to save the life of the pregnant patient.
For more, visit Little Rock Public Radio.
Missouri
Missouri has one of the strictest abortion bans in the U.S., with an exception only to save the life of the pregnant woman.
In August, Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft certified that abortion rights advocates had collected enough signatures to place a constitutional amendment protecting abortion on the 2024 ballot.
If passed, the amendment would replace the current ban with language making abortion legal up to the point of fetal viability.
The ballot initiative has received significant financial support from out-of-state groups, as well as unprecedented volunteer support.
As in other states, anti-abortion groups and lawmakers have tried to hinder the referendum effort. Republican lawmakers tried to get a separate ballot measure to voters that would have made it more difficult to amend the state constitution. However, Democrats fought that off with the longest filibuster in state history. And in September, abortion rights opponents lost a last-minute court battle to keep the question off the ballot just before ballots were printed.
For more, visit St. Louis Public Radio.
Montana
Abortion rights are protected under Montana judicial precedent. In 1999, the state Supreme Court ruled that the state’s constitutional right to privacy protects access to abortion until the point of viability. The court has reaffirmed the ruling in recent years.
If approved by voters, the ballot measure in Montana would add language to the state constitution protecting abortion access up until fetal viability.
After a couple attempts by top Republican officials to halt the proposal, Republican Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen officially certified the amendment in August, clearing the way for it to appear on the ballot.
In June, the initiative’s supporters submitted more than 117,000 signatures for the proposal, far more than the 60,000 signatures required to qualify for the ballot.
Though abortion is accessible, Republican lawmakers have passed several laws placing restrictions on abortions at the request of GOP Gov. Greg Gianforte in recent years.
For more, visit Montana Public Radio.
Nebraska
In 2023, the Nebraska Legislature banned abortion after 12 weeks of pregnancy. There are exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the pregnant patient.
Voters in Nebraska have two opposing abortion questions on their ballot.
One proposal — backed by Nebraska’s most prominent anti-abortion groups — would enshrine into the constitution that current law banning most abortions after the first trimester.
That amendment would also allow more abortion restrictions to be passed by the Legislature. The Ricketts family, including Republican U.S. Sen. Pete Ricketts, has donated heavily to the effort.
Voters will also see an amendment proposal on the ballot to expand abortion rights until fetal viability — usually around 24 weeks. That petition was backed by Protect Our Rights, a coalition of abortion rights groups like Planned Parenthood, ACLU Nebraska and I Be Black Girl.
November’s election could mark the first time Nebraskans see two competing petition efforts on the same ballot. If a majority of voters approve both proposals in November, officials say whichever gets the most votes will win.
For more, visit Nebraska Public Media.
Nevada
Under a state law approved by voters in 1990, abortion is legal in Nevada within the first 24 weeks of pregnancy. Abortion-rights advocates want to put that in the state constitution with an amendment guaranteeing abortion access up until fetal viability (usually about 24 weeks).
In late June, the Nevada secretary of state said the issue met all requirements to appear on the ballot. But for the amendment to take effect, voters would have to approve the initiative twice, once in 2024 and again in 2026.
Polling has consistently shown that roughly two-thirds of Nevadans believe access to abortion should be legal.
Nevada Democrats say the goal of protecting abortion access mobilized voters during the 2022 midterm elections and they have emphasized the issue again this year, with a U.S. Senate seat and congressional seats at stake.
For more, visit Nevada Public Radio.
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