Much attention has been centered on whether or not the GOP will maintain or even expand its slim majority in the U.S. House of Representatives in November’s midterm elections, but multiple states will be voting on more than just who represents their interests in Congress. Constitutional amendments enshrining a “right” to abortion will appear or likely appear on ballots in four states so far in November, while at least one state may move to protect the unborn.

Idaho

Voters in the Gem State will likely be presented with a proposed constitutional amendment later this year, entitled the “Idaho Reproductive Freedom and Privacy Act Initiative,” which would adjust the state’s constitution to ensure that “[e]very person has the right to reproductive freedom and privacy, which entails the right to make and carry out one’s own reproductive decisions, including but not limited to decisions on: pregnancy; contraception; fertility treatment; prenatal and postpartum care; childbirth; continuing one’s own pregnancy; miscarriage care; and, abortion care.”

The initiative was launched in the summer of 2024 by the pro-abortion group Idahoans United for Women and Families, and Idaho Secretary of State Phil McGrane (R) subsequently issued a ballot title and summary. The pro-abortion group, however, was quick to file a lawsuit, alleging that McGrane’s ballot title and summary were “deceptively worded.” McGrane titled the ballot initiative a “Measure establishing a right to make and carry out reproductive decisions, including a right to abortion up to fetus viability.” Idahoans United for Women and Families argued that the phrasing should be “fetal viability,” claiming that the term “fetus viability” was “biased and not a medical term.” Last year, Idaho’s Supreme Court ordered the state to change the ballot title and summary, noting that the measure itself would actually allow for abortions past the point of “fetal viability” in cases where the life of the mother was determined to be at risk.

In order to put a proposed constitutional amendment on the ballot via petition in Idaho, an individual or organization needs 70,725 signatures — 6% of registered voters in at least 18 of the state’s 35 legislative districts. As of this week, Idahoans United for Women and Families claimed to have over 63,000 signatures. The deadline for submitting those signatures to the Secretary of State is May 1.

Missouri

In 2024, voters in the Show-Me State narrowly (51.6% to 48.4%) approved a constitutional amendment creating a “right” to abortion. This year, they’ll have the opportunity to reverse that error. Amendment 3, entitled the “Prohibit Abortion and Gender Transition Procedures for Minors Amendment,” would not only reverse the prior amendment but explicitly protect unborn lives and bar harmful gender transition procedures from being committed against minors.

“The state’s duty to protect public health and welfare includes protecting the integrity and ethics of the medical profession. The state’s interest in regulating the practice of medicine is even greater in areas of medical and scientific uncertainty or in areas that raise grave moral and ethical concerns, including abortion and gender transition procedures,” the proposed amendment reads. It would allow abortions only in cases of “medical emergency, fetal anomaly, rape, or incest,” with abortions committed under the latter two circumstances being prohibited after 12 weeks of gestation. The proposed amendment would also block state funds from being used to pay for abortions and would unequivocally outlaw “[f]etal organ harvesting after an abortion…”

The Republican Party of Missouri, Missouri Right to Life, and the Missouri Catholic Conference, representing the state’s Catholic bishops, have all endorsed and supported the proposal, while the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Missouri, two Planned Parenthood political action groups, and numerous Missouri-based pro-abortion groups are working to oppose the measure. According to records reported by the Missouri Ethics Commission in September, nearly $160,000 has been raised to support the proposed amendment’s passage, while pro-abortion forces have raised over $1 million and spent more than double what pro-lifers have even raised.

Nevada

Silver State voters will also be presented with a chance to undo a previous pro-abortion measure in November. In 2024, voters approved an amendment to the state’s constitution creating a “right” to abortion, by a margin of nearly two-to-one. However, Nevada’s constitution requires that constitutional amendments via referendum be approved in two consecutive even-numbered years before the constitution is actually amended. Since the measure was approved in 2024, it will be presented to voters a second time on November 3.

“All individuals shall have a fundamental right to abortion performed or administered by a qualified health care practitioner until fetal viability, or when needed to protect the life or health of the pregnant patient, without interference from the state or its political subdivisions,” the proposed amendment reads. “The right established by this section shall not be denied, burdened, or infringed upon unless justified by a compelling state interest,” which is defined in the proposed amendment as “an interest which is limited exclusively to the state’s interest in protecting, maintaining, or improving the health of an individual who is seeking abortion care that is consistent with accepted clinical standards of practice.”

Oregon

Voters in the Beaver State may also face an abortion-related ballot question this year, expanding an anti-discrimination state constitutional amendment to bar “law and policies” which “discriminate” on the basis of “pregnancy/pregnancy outcomes and related health decisions,” in addition to “gender identity and related health decisions” and “sexual orientation, including the right to marry…” The measure, if approved, would also repeal Article XV, section 5a of Oregon’s constitution, which nominally defines marriage as between one man and one woman, but has been legally unenforceable since the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2015 Obergefell ruling.

A campaign to gather signatures is already underway in Oregon, where 160,551 valid signatures are required to place a proposed constitutional amendment on the ballot. Signatures must be submitted to the Secretary of State no later than July 2. Oregon already has some of the nation’s most liberal abortion laws, effectively allowing abortion for any reason up to the point of birth.

Virginia

As The Washington Stand previously reported, Democrats in Old Dominion will be asking voters to enshrine a “right” to abortion in the state constitution this November, too. Virginia’s General Assembly voted last week to advance the “Virginia Right to Reproductive Freedom Amendment” on the ballot, declaring that “every individual has the fundamental right to reproductive freedom, including the ability to make and carry out decisions relating to one’s own prenatal care, childbirth, postpartum care, contraception, abortion care, miscarriage management, and fertility care.”

Virginia already has extremely permissive abortion laws and has become an “abortion destination” for women in states further south where pro-life laws protect unborn children. Since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, travel to Virginia for abortions has increased by 30%.