Abortion rights measures fail in Florida, succeed in 2 other states ...

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Voters in Missouri cleared the way to undo one of the nation's most restrictive abortion bans in one of four victories Tuesday for abortion rights advocates, while Florida defeated a similar constitutional amendment, leaving in place a law barring most abortions after the first six weeks of pregnancy.

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Abortion rights amendments also passed in Colorado, Maryland and New York

The Associated Press

· Posted: Nov 05, 2024 11:43 PM EST | Last Updated: 27 minutes ago

Dr. Chelsea Daniels, who works in family medicine for Planned Parenthood, reacts after the defeat of Amendment 4, which would have enshrined abortion rights in Florida, at a Yes On 4 campaign watch party on Tuesday in St. Petersburg, Fla. (Rebecca Blackwell/The Associated Press)

Voters in Missouri cleared the way to undo one of the nation's most restrictive abortion bans in one of four victories Tuesday for abortion rights advocates. Florida, meanwhile, defeated a similar constitutional amendment, leaving in place a law barring most abortions after the first six weeks of pregnancy.

Abortion rights amendments were passed in Colorado and Maryland; in New York, another amendment that bans discrimination on the basis of "pregnancy outcomes" prevailed.

Early Wednesday morning, results were still pending in five other states with abortion measures on the ballot.

Two women hug during a rally for Amendment 3, a measure that would establish a constitutional right to abortion, at a UAW local in Kansas City, Missouri last month. (Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters)

The Missouri and Florida results represent firsts in the abortion landscape, which underwent a seismic shift in 2022 when the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, a ruling that ended a nationwide right to abortion and cleared the way for bans to take effect in most Republican-controlled states.

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Missouri is positioned to be the first state where a vote will undo a ban that is already in place. Currently, abortion is barred at all stages of pregnancy with an exception only when a medical emergency puts the woman's life at risk. Under the amendment, lawmakers would be able to restrict abortions past the point that a fetus is viable — usually considered after 21 weeks, although there's no exact defined time frame.

But the ban, and other restrictive laws, are not automatically repealed. Advocates now have to ask courts to overturn laws to square with the new amendment.

"Today, Missourians made history and sent a clear message: decisions around pregnancy, including abortion, birth control and miscarriage care are personal and private and should be left up to patients and their families, not politicians," Rachel Sweet, campaign manager of Missourians for Constitutional Freedom, said in a statement.

The Florida result is the first ballot measure victory for abortion opponents in any state since Roe v. Wade was overturned. The result is considered a political win for Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, and will keep in place the state's ban on most abortions after the first six weeks of pregnancy.

The measure was polling at 57 per cent approval with 88 per cent of votes tallied late Tuesday, but failed to clear the required 60 per cent voter approval threshold to pass constitutional amendments in Florida. Most states require a simple majority.

Anti-abortion group celebrates 'momentous victory'

Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the national anti-abortion group SBA Pro-Life America, said in a statement that the result is "a momentous victory for life in Florida and for our entire country," praising DeSantis for leading the charge against the measure.

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DeSantis, a Republican with a national profile, has steered state GOP funds to the cause. His administration has weighed in, too, with a campaign against the measure, investigators questioning people who signed petitions to add it to the ballot and threats to TV stations that aired one commercial supporting it.

Ashley Urban, wearing a 'Vote No' on Florida Amendment 4 shirt, which addresses the state’s abortion bill, gathers with other parishioners for an Election Eve Service of Prayer, in support of Republican Presidential nominee Donald Trump in Largo, Fla., on Monday. (Octavio Jones/Reuters)

The defeat makes permanent a shift in the Southern abortion landscape that began when the state's six-week ban took effect in May. That removed Florida as a destination for abortion for many women from nearby states with deeper bans and also led to far more women from the state travelling to obtain an abortion.

The nearest states with looser restrictions are North Carolina and Virginia.

"The reality is because of Florida's constitution a minority of Florida voters have decided Amendment 4 will not be adopted," said Lauren Brenzel, campaign director for the Yes on 4 Campaign. "The reality is a majority of Floridians just voted to end Florida's abortion ban."

Florida result ends win streak for abortion-rights advocates

In Maryland, the abortion rights amendment that passed Tuesday is a legal change that won't make an immediate difference to abortion access in a state that already allows it.

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A New York equal rights law that abortion-rights groups say will bolster abortion rights also passed. It doesn't contain the word "abortion" but rather bans discrimination on the basis of "pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive health care and autonomy."

Currently, 13 states are enforcing bans at all stages of pregnancy, with some exceptions. Four more bar abortion in most cases after about six weeks of pregnancy — before women often realize they're pregnant. (Pregnancy is counted from the first day of a woman's last period, not the date of conception, which is later.)

A handmade information board encourages Floridians to vote yes on Amendment 4 to enshrine abortion rights in the state, in the waiting room of an abortion clinic, on election day Tuesday. (Rebecca Blackwell/The Associated Press)

The bans also are part of a key argument in the presidential race.

Vice-President Kamala Harris called them "Trump abortion bans," noting former President Donald Trump's role in overturning Roe v. Wade. Harris, meanwhile, has portrayed herself as a direct, consistent advocate for reproductive health and rights, including Black maternal health.

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Trump has struggled to thread a divide between his own base of anti-abortion supporters and the majority of Americans who support abortion rights, leaning on his catch-all response that abortion rights should be left up to individual states. His shifting stances on reproductive rights include vowing in October to veto a national abortion ban, just weeks after the presidential debate when he repeatedly declined to say.

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Trump also has regularly taken credit for appointing three Supreme Court justices who helped overturn Roe v. Wade.

After voting in Palm Beach, Florida, on Tuesday, Trump was asked twice how he voted on the abortion measure there but he didn't answer directly. The first time he said he did "a great job bringing it back to the states." The second time, he snapped at a reporter, saying "You should stop talking about that."

The measures could roll back bans in other states

In the other states voting on abortion measures Tuesday, the ballot questions have similar aims, but each one occupies its own political circumstances.

Nebraska has competing ballot measures. One would allow abortion further into pregnancy. The other would enshrine in the constitution the state's current law, which bars most abortions after 12 weeks — but would allow for further restrictions.

In South Dakota, the measure would allow some regulations related to the health of the woman after 12 weeks. Because of that wrinkle, most national abortion-rights groups are not supporting it.

Arizona, a battleground in the presidential election, bans abortion after the first 15 weeks of pregnancy. The ballot measure there gained momentum after a state Supreme Court ruling in April found that the state could enforce a strict abortion ban adopted in 1864. Some GOP lawmakers joined with Democrats to repeal the law before it could be enforced.

Measures maintaining access also are on the ballot in Montana, where a U.S. Senate race could help determine control of the chamber, and Nevada, a battleground in the presidential election. In Nevada, where control of the state government is divided, the ballot measure would have to be passed this year and again in 2026 to take effect.

With files from CBC News

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