MO Supreme Court Greenlights Deceptive Abortion Amendment

The Missouri Supreme Court declined demands that it “follow the law” when it ruled on Tuesday that a proposed amendment hoping to legalize abortion through all nine months of pregnancy could stay on the November ballot despite questions about its constitutionality.

The high bench’s decision reverses a ruling from Cole County Circuit Judge Christopher Limbaugh, who found last week that the petition to put abortion through birth in front of voters did not meet the Disclaimer mandates outlined by Missouri law.

“By a majority vote of this Court, the circuit court’s judgment is reversed. Respondent John R. Ashcroft shall certify to local election authorities that Amendment 3 be placed on the November 5, 2024, general election ballot and shall take all steps necessary to ensure that it is on said ballot,” the court’s ruling said.

The proposed amendment seeks to permanently permit abortion in the Show-Me State, which currently bars abortions “except in cases of medical emergency,” by adding a “right to reproductive freedom” to the state constitution.

The ballot measure’s deliberately vague language not only promises that anyone will “make and carry out decisions about all matters” concerning “reproductive healthcare,” but also would prohibit legislators from enacting or enforcing protections for women and unborn babies.

The abortion activists responsible for coordinating the wave of ballot measure battles in red states like Missouri often pursue legal challenges that capitalize on the undefined language in these amendments to specifically target parental consent and abortion reporting laws.

Limbaugh agreed with the pro-life legislators and Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, who filed the challenge, that “Missourians have a constitutional right to know what laws their votes would overturn before deciding to sign initiative petitions.”

“The full and correct text failed to identify any ‘sections of existing law or of the constitution which would be repealed by the measure,’” Limbaugh wrote.

The state supreme court, however, ignored concerns that Amendment 3 violates the state constitution and statutes and demanded the sweeping amendment be printed on ballots for the upcoming election.

Thomas More Society Senior Counsel Mary Catherine Martin, who represented the Amendment 3 challengers in court, said allowing the radical abortion proposal to make it to the election is “a failure to protect voters, by not upholding state laws that ensure voters are fully informed going into the ballot box.”

“It is deeply unfortunate the court decided to ignore laws that protect voters in order to satisfy pro-abortion activists who intentionally omitted critical information from the initiative petition,” she said in a statement. “This ruling takes away important protections from all Missouri citizens to serve the well-funded political goals of a few.”

Much like the nearly dozen other abortion ballot initiatives plaguing states this fall, Missouri’s Amendment 3, Martin warned, “will have far-reaching implications on the state’s abortion laws and well beyond” that “the initiative campaign intentionally hid from voters.”

“We implore Missourians to research and study the text and effects of Amendment 3 before going to the voting booth,” she concluded.

Republican Rep. Mark Alford of Missouri’s fourth congressional district agreed that “the Progressive Democrat tricksters pushing this measure completely misled the public about the real truth of Amendment 3 and the staggering scope of laws it would invalidate.”

“We cannot allow organizations to mislead voters like this, and today’s decision allowing Amendment 3 to remain on the ballot is a profound disappointment,” he said in a statement. “It’s a loss for our Constitution, a loss for the people of Missouri, and a loss for Life.”

Jordan Boyd is a staff writer at The Federalist and producer of The Federalist Radio Hour. Her work has also been featured in The Daily Wire, Fox News, and RealClearPolitics. Jordan graduated from Baylor University where she majored in political science and minored in journalism. Follow her on X @jordanboydtx.