On Wednesday, January 17, 2024, a coalition of Missouri abortion-rights groups announced that they would begin collecting signatures to put a pro-abortion constitutional amendment on the 2024 ballot. The group, called Missourians for Constitutional Freedom, has the support of Abortion Action Missouri, the ACLU of Missouri, and Planned Parenthood affiliates in Kansas City and St. Louis. The group announced that it had already raised more than $1 million in donations on its first day of launch, with the largest contribution coming from a $500,000 check from an out-of-state organization called the Fairness Project.
Missourians for Constitutional Freedom had previously filed 11 initiatives that would each seek to add abortion rights to the Missouri Constitution. This week, the group announced that it would pursue the version of its initiative that it claims would allow unregulated abortion until viability.
The proposed amendment states that the government “shall not infringe upon a person’s fundamental right to reproductive freedom, which is the right to make and carry out decisions about all matters related to reproductive health care, including but not limited to prenatal care, childbirth, postpartum care, birth control, abortion care, miscarriage care, and respectful birthing conditions.”
The proposal states that the legislature may regulate abortion after fetal viability, except where the life or physical or mental health of the mother is in danger. This means that an abortion can occur through all nine months of pregnancy as long as a health care provider is willing to state that the abortion is necessary for the woman’s mental health.
While pro-abortion groups were announcing their intent to place abortion rights on the ballot, a pro-life coalition announced its intent to fight these ballot initiatives. The group, called Missouri Stands with Women, was formed to “protect Missouri’s laws respecting the dignity of life, the safety of women and parental rights.”
“Out-of-state extremists pushing Big Abortion’s agenda are intent on using the initiative petition process to reverse all the pro-life work our state has undertaken to protect the dignity of life, safety of women and parental rights”, said Stephanie Bell, a spokeswoman for Missouri Stands with Women. “We are united in our efforts to ensure these out-of-state extremists are not allowed to tear the fabric of our constitution by placing unregulated, taxpayer-funded abortions up to the moment of birth, effectively overriding all Missouri’s pro-life laws.”
To learn more about Missouri Stands with Women, please click here.
The MCC will continue to partner with Missouri Stands with Women and other pro-life and pro-woman advocates to fight this abortion initiative and will continue to provide updates on the campaign.