Missouri has one of the nation’s strictest abortion bans. Now it’s up to voters to decide whether to keep it

Missouri voters this election will decide whether to effectively undo their state’s near-total abortion ban – one of the nation’s strictest – with a ballot measure that aims to write reproductive freedoms into the state’s constitution.

Missouri voters this election will decide whether to effectively undo their state’s near-total abortion ban – one of the nation’s strictest – with a ballot measure that aims to write reproductive freedoms into the state’s constitution. It is one of 10 states voting on constitutional amendments to protect reproductive rights this election – and one of five that could see its vote overturn an abortion ban or restrictive abortion policy. If passed, the Missouri ballot measure would establish the right to make reproductive care decisions – including about abortion – without interference up to fetal viability, around 22 to 24 weeks into pregnancy. When the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, ending the national right to an abortion, Missouri was the first state in the nation to implement an abortion ban. With no exceptions for survivors of rape or incest, it is one of the nation’s most restrictive abortion laws. Missouri’s law outlines an exception for medical emergencies, but not fetal anomalies or other pregnancy complications. It also places abortion providers at risk of legal liability. “For as long as I can remember, I wanted to be a mom. I’m lucky to have my son, but I wasn’t lucky with my second pregnancy,” a woman referred to only as “Erika,” from Kansas City, Missouri, says in a campaign ad in favor of the measure.