ACLU sues to block ‘misleading' abortion ban from Missouri ballot

Yahoo

19 hours ago

The ACLU of Missouri on Wednesday sued to block a proposed abortion ban from reaching the statewide ballot next year, marking the first major legal challenge intended to halt a Republican-led attempt to ban abortions again in Missouri.
The lawsuit, filed in Cole County, argues the proposed abortion ban, which would also ban transgender health care for minors, violates the state constitution's requirement that ballot measures only deal with one subject.
The suit also alleges that the language that voters would see on their ballots and posted at polling places, called a summary statement and fair ballot language, is misleading and written to entice voters. It specifically points to the fact that the language does not inform voters that the ballot measure would ban abortions.
The lawsuit asks a judge to block the measure from the Nov. 3, 2026, ballot because it includes multiple subjects in violation of the state constitution. If the judge doesn't block it, the lawsuit asks the court to instead certify new, more accurate language for the ballot question.
Wednesday's lawsuit comes after Republican lawmakers in May voted to put the proposed constitutional amendment on the ballot. The proposed ban was in response to a November statewide vote that legalized abortion and overturned a previous ban on the procedure.
'Less than six months after we voted to end Missouri's abortion ban and protect reproductive freedom, politicians chose to ignore the will of the people so they can reinstate their ban on abortion,' Tori Schafer, the ACLU's director of policy and campaigns, said in a statement.
The proposed abortion ban, if approved, would strike down the November vote that legalized abortion in the state. The measure would allow abortions in medical emergencies and cases of fetal anomalies, such as birth defects. It would also allow the procedure in exceptionally rare cases of rape or incest within 12 weeks of gestational age.
The language of the legislation, however, is silent on when exactly abortion would be banned, making it unclear whether the amendment is intended to allow the state's previous abortion ban to take effect or give lawmakers the ability to pass legislation to restrict access.
The suit also comes after Secretary of State Denny Hoskins, a Republican who is named as a defendant in the lawsuit, certified the amendment for the November 2026 ballot. Hoskins certified the ban as 'Amendment 3,' the same name as the amendment that legalized abortions last November.
The ACLU and the Missouri-based law firm Stinson filed the suit on behalf of Anna Fitz-James, a retired St. Louis-area doctor who initially filed the measure to legalize abortion.
In addition to Hoskins, the suit also names three Republican state lawmakers as defendants, Senate President Pro Tem Cindy O'Laughlin from Shelbina, House Speaker Jonathan Patterson from Lee's Summit and Rep. Ed Lewis, the bill sponsor from Moberly.
Lewis, in a statement to the Star, defended the language of the ballot measure, saying it 'seeks to find a middle ground on the abortion issue' and 'doesn't ban all abortions.'
'This is a ballot initiative that goes to the vote of the people, for their decision,' Lewis said. 'Why would anyone want to block it from the ballot?'
A spokesperson for Hoskins declined comment on the suit, citing office policy not to comment on litigation. O'Laughlin also declined comment. Patterson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The ACLU, in the lawsuit, argues that the language of the proposed ban is 'misleading and inaccurate' because it does not inform voters that the amendment would eliminate the right to reproductive freedom, among other laws guaranteed by last November's vote.
The ballot title certified by Hoskins states:
'Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to:
Guarantee access to care for medical emergencies, ectopic pregnancies, and miscarriages;
Ensure women's safety during abortions;
Ensure parental consent for minors;
Allow abortions for medical emergencies, fetal anomalies, rape, and incest;
Require physicians to provide medically accurate information; and
Protect children from gender transition?'
In addition to the misleading language, the lawsuit also alleges that the ballot measure includes multiple subjects in violation of the state constitution.
While the measure relates to 'reproductive health care,' the lawsuit points to the fact that it also bans gender-affirming care for minors, requires all legal actions related to reproductive health care to be filed in Cole County and creates a system that notifies Republican Attorney General Andrew Bailey when there are lawsuits questioning the constitutionality of state laws.
The decision to place the abortion ban on the November 2026 ballot was remarkable, signifying a retaliatory response from Republican lawmakers after nearly 52% of voters overturned the state's abortion ban.
The vote last November was historic, offering a fierce rebuke of Republican state lawmakers who had spent decades restricting access. The constitutional amendment overturned a near-total ban that was enacted in 2022 after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade.
In the wake of the vote, abortion opponents regularly argued in the state Capitol that Missourians didn't understand what they were voting on when they approved the measure. They claimed the measure would lead to unrestricted and unregulated abortions.
But months after the vote, abortion providers are still fighting state officials in court to restore complete access.
While Planned Parenthood's Kansas City clinic in February performed the first elective abortion in the state since the vote, abortions are once again effectively banned under a procedural ruling by the state Supreme Court in May.