The organizers responsible for the abortion-rights amendment on Missouri’s November ballot have recently filed a lawsuit claiming that the “fair ballot language” drafted by the secretary of state’s office is purposely argumentative and likely to cause confusion among voters.
Missouri Amendment 3 seeks to determine whether voters support the legalization of abortion until the fetus is viable. Currently, abortion is prohibited in Missouri, except for specific circumstances related to the health and life of the mother, since June 2022.
Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft recently certified the measure for the ballot. Alongside this certification, the office also published the amendment’s fair ballot language statement on its website. This statement is intended to be displayed at every polling place, next to the sample ballot.
According to the secretary of state’s website, the current language states that a “yes” vote will establish the right to abortion throughout all stages of pregnancy in the Missouri Constitution. Furthermore, it will prevent any form of regulation on abortion, including measures aimed at safeguarding the well-being of women seeking abortions. Additionally, it will prohibit any legal consequences, civil or criminal, for those who perform abortions that result in harm or death to the pregnant women.
Rachel Sweet, campaign manager with Missourians for Constitutional Freedom, expressed her frustration with the actions of the politicians, claiming that they are well aware of the strong support for Amendment 3 among Missouri voters. She accused them of employing dishonest and misleading tactics in their attempts to sway public opinion.
Dr. Anna Fitz-James, the plaintiff in the lawsuit, criticized Ashcroft’s language as unfair, insufficient, inaccurate, misleading, argumentative, and prejudicial.
Dr. Fitz-James, a retired physician residing in Missouri, initially submitted the abortion rights initiative petition in March 2023. This petition was filed on behalf of Missourians for Constitutional Freedom, the campaign responsible for the fundraising efforts that have generated millions of dollars this year.
According to a lawsuit filed in Cole County, the people of Missouri have the right to receive fair, accurate, and comprehensive information that will enable them to make an informed decision about the Amendment. The lawsuit, which was first reported by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, argues against the dissemination of disinformation by the Secretary of State.
Ashcroft, who recently placed third in the GOP primary for governor, has been outspoken in his stance against abortion.
In response to the lawsuit, which accuses him of pushing a political agenda, Ashcroft expressed his dismay at the factions using the courts to distort the truth for their own political motives. He firmly stated, “I will always stand up for the rights of Missourians to have clear and easily understandable ballot language when they cast their votes on crucial matters like the sanctity of life.”
The abortion rights campaign is urging the court to issue revised and unbiased ballot language while also requesting the removal of Ashcroft’s current language from the government website. A specific court date has not yet been scheduled.
The campaign has previously filed a lawsuit against Ashcroft regarding the ballot measure.
The ballot summary he initially drafted for Missourians would have inquired whether they supported permitting abortions without regulation or restriction, from conception to live birth.
In September, a Missouri judge ruled that Ashcroft’s language was “problematic” and inaccurate.
Despite Ashcroft’s appeal, the Missouri Supreme Court ultimately denied taking up the case.
The approved ballot language in Missouri will now ask voters if they want to:
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- establish a right to make decisions about reproductive health care, including abortion and contraceptives, with any governmental interference of that right presumed invalid;
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- remove Missouri’s ban on abortion;
- allow regulation of reproductive health care to improve or maintain the health of the patient;
- require the government not to discriminate, in government programs, funding, and other activities, against persons providing or obtaining reproductive health care; and
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- allow abortion to be restricted or banned after Fetal Viability except to protect the life or health of the woman?
