Washington — Voters in at least three states voted to protect abortion access through measures on the ballot in Tuesday’s midterm elections, CBS News estimates, scoring victories for abortion rights advocates who worked with urgency to preserve the right to end a pregnancy in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade this year.
Abortion rights were directly on the ballot in California, Michigan, Vermont, Kentucky and Montana, through either proposed amendments to state constitutions or, in Montana, legislative referendum. In California, Michigan and Vermont, voters decided to enshrine abortion rights in their respective state constitutions. The ballot measures in Kentucky and Montana sought to limit abortion access, but CBS News has not projected a final outcome on those questions as of Wednesday.
Concerns about abortion access reached their apex after the Supreme Court’s conservative majority in June wiped away the constitutional right to an abortion, leaving the issue to elected officials in the states. To ensure abortion rights are protected, supporters are pursuing a multi-pronged campaign that includes state legislatures, state courts and an appeal directly to voters through ballot measures.
Buoyed by the defeat in Kansas of a proposed constitutional amendment removing the right to an abortion from the state constitution, other state lawmakers and activists are already laying the groundwork for ballot initiatives in more states in 2024.
For the voters in the five states that weighed in on abortion this Election Day, here’s how each of the proposals fared:
