JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Missouri abortion rights supporters on Wednesday filed a flurry of ballot initiatives seeking to ask voters in 2024 to restore some form of abortion rights in a state where the procedure is almost entirely banned.
While all of the petitions would guarantee the “right to reproductive freedom” in the state constitution, they range from allowing all abortions to only restricting abortions after a certain time period such as 24 weeks.
“I intend to throw my full support behind whichever one they decide to pursue. I suspect they want different options to see what Missourians would be willing to support,” said state Sen. Lauren Arthur, a Kansas City Democrat. “I would just like to see something passed that improves access to abortion for Missourians and I suspect that there will be something that a vast majority of Missourians would support.”
The 11 initiatives, which have been floated for months by abortion rights groups and Democrats, are the first attempt to restore abortion rights at the ballot box in Missouri. The procedure was outlawed except for in medical emergencies under a 2019 law that was triggered after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last year.
The petitions were filed with Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft’s office by Anna Fitz-James, a St. Louis pediatrician, on behalf of a political action committee called Missourians for Constitutional Freedom. It wasn’t immediately clear which organizations are involved with the group.
Fitz-James did not return a call for comment Wednesday. Michael Pridmore, the PAC’s treasurer, also did not return a call.
The Missouri group’s name is similar to Kansans for Constitutional Freedom, the coalition that successfully campaigned last year to defeat an anti-abortion amendment and preserve a right to abortion in the Kansas Constitution.
The Missouri proposals are still in their early stages. A change to the state constitution at the ballot box would require an expensive signature-gathering campaign. The signatures would have to be verified by Ashcroft’s office before they go on the ballot.
Emily Wales, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Great Plains Votes, said in a statement Wednesday that while her organization was not involved with the petitions, the group was committed to restoring abortion rights in Missouri.
“We continue to explore all avenues and opportunities to restore meaningful access to abortion care in Missouri. While we are not directly involved with this effort, we are committed to continuing the fight for reproductive rights,” the statement said. “We know the path forward will take time and effort, but we are focused on a future where Missourians have the same rights as those in neighboring states.”
Sam Lee, a Jefferson City-based anti-abortion lobbyist, criticized the proposals in a statement Wednesday, saying that they were radical.
“If any one of the 11 measures actually gets on the ballot, Missouri voters will reject it,” he said. “Voters will see through this sham promoted by a self-serving abortion industry, which is only out to make a profit on the lives of women and innocent unborn children.”
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