Abortion-related measures are poised to be significant ballot items in several states for the November 2024 election. Here’s a look at where these initiatives stand:
Confirmed Ballots:
Colorado: Voters will decide whether to enshrine abortion protections into the state constitution, requiring both Medicaid and private health insurers to cover abortion services. Supporters gathered over 225,000 signatures, nearly doubling the required amount. Currently, abortion is legal at all stages of pregnancy in Colorado.
Florida: Despite legal challenges, a measure to legalize abortion until viability will be on the ballot. Advocates collected nearly a million signatures, far exceeding the necessary number. As of now, Florida law bans abortion after the first six weeks of pregnancy.
Maryland: This state will ask voters to decide on a constitutional amendment to enshrine the right to abortion. Maryland already protects abortion rights under state law until viability, and Democrats outnumber Republicans two to one.
Nevada: Voters will face a question to enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution, guaranteeing access for the first 24 weeks of pregnancy, or later if needed to protect the health of the pregnant person. This would require approval in both 2024 and 2026 to change the constitution.
South Dakota: A measure on the ballot seeks to ban any restrictions on abortion in the first trimester. The state’s top election official confirmed that about 85% of the submitted signatures were valid, surpassing the required amount.
Pending Verification:
Arizona: Over 823,000 signatures have been submitted to put an abortion access measure on the ballot. If verified, the measure would prevent abortion bans until fetal viability, with exceptions for protecting a woman’s physical or mental health. Currently, abortion is legal up to 15 weeks in Arizona.
Arkansas: Supporters of a measure to allow abortion in many cases must gather nearly 91,000 signatures by Friday. The measure would bar laws banning abortion in the first 20 weeks of gestation, with exceptions for rape, incest, or threats to the woman’s health or life.
Missouri: More than 380,000 signatures have been turned in for a measure to approve a constitutional amendment guaranteeing abortion until viability. Verification is ongoing, and the measure could be on the November ballot.
Montana: A proposed constitutional amendment would bar the government from denying the right to abortion before viability or when necessary to protect health. Nearly 117,000 signatures were submitted, and counties are verifying them.
Nebraska: Competing measures could be on the ballot. One would enshrine the right to abortion in the state constitution until viability, while another would codify the current law barring abortions after the first 12 weeks. Each measure has submitted over 200,000 signatures for validation.
Wisconsin: Efforts to ban abortion after 14 weeks were not brought to a vote in the state Senate before the legislative session ended.
Iowa: Lawmakers did not approve a measure asking voters to declare no constitutional right to abortion.
Pennsylvania, Louisiana, Maine, and Minnesota: Various attempts to restrict or protect abortion rights failed to advance to the ballot stage.
The inclusion of these measures reflects ongoing national debates and varying state responses to the 2022 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that removed the nationwide right to abortion.
With voters in seven states siding with abortion rights supporters since the ruling, the 2024 ballots will provide further insight into the country’s stance on this critical issue. Each state’s unique legislative and advocacy landscape contributes to the diverse approaches to abortion rights across the nation.