Missouri's abortion law amendment could be removed from the ballot after ruling

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — A Missouri judge ruled Friday that an abortion rights campaign does not meet legal requirements to get on the November ballot, potentially undoing years of efforts to overturn the state's near-total abortion ban.

But Cole County Circuit Judge Christopher Limbaugh declined to remove the measure from the ballot, instead giving the abortion rights movement a chance to file a last-minute appeal before Tuesday's deadline to make changes to the Missouri ballot.

Missourians for Constitutional Freedom will appeal the decision and hopes for “a swift resolution so that Missourians can vote on November 5 to protect reproductive freedom, including access to abortion, contraception and miscarriage care,” campaign manager Rachel Sweet said in a statement.

“The court's decision not to put Amendment 3 on the ballot represents a grave injustice to the ballot initiative process and undermines the rights of the 380,000 Missourians who signed our petition demanding a say on this critical issue,” Sweet said.

In his ruling, Limbaugh said Missourians for Constitutional Freedom did not do enough during the signature-gathering process to inform voters that the measure would overturn the state's near-total ban on abortion.

“However, this Court also recognizes the severity of the unique issues presented by this case and the lack of direct precedent on this point,” Limbaugh wrote. “The Court will therefore stay enforcement of a preliminary injunction until September 10, 2024, the statutory deadline for hearing the case, to allow a reviewing court to issue further guidance or rulings.”

At least nine other states will consider constitutional changes Establishing abortion rights this fall – Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Maryland, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada and South Dakota. Most would guarantee a right to abortion until the fetus is viable and allow it later for the benefit of the pregnant woman, which is also what Missouri's proposal envisages.

There is also a ballot bill in New York that supporters say would protect abortion rights, but there is disagreement about its effects.

In all seven states where abortion issues have been on the ballot since 2022, voters have sided with abortion rights advocates.

A group of anti-abortion activists filed a lawsuit last month to remove the amendment from the ballot in Missouri.

The plaintiff's attorney, Mary Catherine Martin, said during the hearing before a single judge on Friday that at least some voters would not have signed the petition to put the amendment on the ballot if they had known about all the laws that could be repealed.

“It is impossible to say whether supporters of this radical change would have collected enough signatures to put it on the ballot had the truth about the appalling scope of the laws that Amendment 3 would invalidate come to light,” the plaintiffs said in a statement following the judge's decision.

Loretta Haggard, an attorney for the Abortion Rights Campaign, argued that it would be up to future judges to decide which abortion laws would be overturned if the amendment passed.

“Courts should not issue 'advisory opinions' or speculate on whether a particular proposal, if adopted, would violate the law,” the campaign's lawyers wrote in a court brief.

Missouri banned most abortions immediately after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. While there is an exception for medical emergencies, almost no abortions have taken place in Missouri facilities since then.

In response to the ban, the Missouri branch of the ACLU, the local Planned Parenthood organization, and a group called Abortion Action in Missouri launched a campaign to legalize abortion. Although women who have an abortion are protected from criminal prosecution in Missouri, anyone who has an abortion outside of the state's limited exceptions faces felony charges.

The amendment, proposed by Missourians for Constitutional Freedom, would guarantee an individual's right to abortion and other reproductive health decisions.