A Missouri judge has ruled that a proposed ballot measure to enshrine abortion access in the state Constitution failed to meet the legal requirements for the November ballot, delivering a setback to the campaign seeking to overturn the state’s near-total abortion ban, while still allowing the organization a chance to appeal.
Cole County Circuit Judge Christopher Limbaugh ruled on Sept. 6 that the proposed measure, known as Amendment 3, did not adequately inform voters about the laws it would potentially overturn.
However, Limbaugh did not immediately remove the measure from the ballot, giving Missourians for Constitutional Freedom, the group behind the initiative, time to file an appeal. The judge stayed the execution of his injunction until Sept. 10, allowing for a higher court to potentially reverse his decision before the statutory deadline for changes to the ballot.
Rachel Sweet, campaign manager for Missourians for Constitutional Freedom, vowed to appeal the ruling, describing it as an injustice to the nearly 380,000 Missourians who signed the petition.
The proposed Amendment 3 would enshrine the right to abortion in Missouri’s state constitution, allowing for abortions until fetal viability and also permitting them afterward if the health of the pregnant woman is at risk. It would also provide protections against criminal prosecution for people who assist with abortions.
The measure is a response to Missouri’s current abortion ban, which took effect after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022. Missouri was the first state to enact a near-total ban on abortion following the ruling.
Opponents of Amendment 3, including several Missouri citizens who filed the lawsuit challenging the initiative, argue that the petition misleads voters by failing to disclose which specific laws would be overturned if the amendment passed.
“There is no way to know if the proponents of this radical amendment would have gathered enough signatures to place this on the ballot if the truth about the staggering scope of laws Amendment 3 invalidates had been disclosed,” Mary Catherine Martin, attorney for the plaintiffs, said during the Sept. 6 bench trial.
Loretta Haggard, a lawyer representing the abortion measure campaign, contended that determining which laws would be affected should be left to future judges if the amendment passes.
“Courts should not give ‘advisory opinions’ or speculate whether a particular proposal would, if adopted, violate the law,” campaign lawyers stated in a court brief.
At least nine other states, including Arizona, Colorado, and Florida, are also considering amendments to enshrine abortion into their constitutions this fall. Like Missouri’s proposed amendment, most of the ballot initiatives in these states would guarantee a right to abortion until fetal viability, or later if the mother’s health is at risk.
