Missourians will get to vote on abortion rights in November as ballot initiative passes!
Jefferson City, Missouri - Missouri voters will have the chance to reverse the state's near total abortion ban in November after an initiative to amend the Missouri constitution to guarantee a right to abortion care made it on the ballot.
The secretary of state’s office certified Tuesday that the ballot initiative petition had received more than enough valid signatures from registered voters to qualify for the general election on November 5.
The proposal received more than 380,000 signatures from Missourians across the state, per a press release from Missourians for Constitutional Freedom, one of the organizations sponsoring the amendment, in collaboration with Planned Parenthood affiliates and the American Civil Liberties Union.
If Amendment 3 is passed, it would "do something that no other state has done before - end a total abortion ban at the ballot box," Rachel Sweet, campaign manager for Missourians for Constitutional Freedom, told ABC News.
When the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, abortion became prohibited in the state "except in cases of medical emergency." The law makes abortion care a felony, punishable by five to 15 in prison for the provider.
To become enshrined in the state constitution, Amendment 3 needs a simple majority to pass.
Missourians won't be the only ones voting on abortion rights this November. Voters from half a dozen states including Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Maryland, Nevada, and South Dakota will be deciding on abortion care-related measures.
Abortion rights have prevailed almost every time voters have been given the chance to decide.
Cover photo: 123rf/benkrut