Missouri judge’s ruling throws last-minute curveball in abortion ballot fight

The fate of an abortion rights amendment in Missouri will be in the hands of the state supreme court Tuesday, after a judge ruled late Friday that the amendment violated state law. 

The ruling from Cole County Circuit Judge Christopher Limbaugh was a last-minute curveball that has suddenly thrown into doubt the future of a push to expand abortion access in the deep-red state, as the amendment would undo the state’s near-total abortion ban. 

Abortion is illegal in Missouri, with limited exceptions for the life and health of the mother. 

“The court’s decision to block Amendment 3 from appearing on the ballot is a profound injustice to the initiative petition process and undermines the rights of the 380,000 Missourians who signed our petition demanding a voice on this critical issue,” Rachel Sweet, campaign manager for Missourians for Constitutional Freedom, said in a statement following the ruling. 

Attorneys for Missourians for Constitutional Freedom filed an appeal, and the case bypassed the court of appeals to head directly to the state Supreme Court.  

Tuesday is the deadline for ballots to be printed that will be mailed to absentee voters, so a decision must be made the same day. 

The amendment, if passed, would permit abortion until fetal viability, at about 24 weeks, the point in a pregnancy when a fetus can survive outside the womb.  

Missouri is one of 10 states that could potentially vote on abortion rights ballot amendments in November. Abortion rights supporters have succeeded every time the issue has been on a state ballot since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade more than two years ago. 

Missouri was the first state to ban almost all abortions after the ruling, and passage of the ballot measure would be the first time such a ban would be overturned.

Limbaugh on Friday sided with anti-abortion lawmakers and activists who filed a lawsuit to remove the amendment from the ballot, arguing it did not adequately inform voters who signed petitions about the amendment’s ramifications. 

Limbaugh served as general counsel to Gov. Mike Parson (R) before being appointed to the court and is a cousin of Rush Limbaugh, the conservative radio host who died in 2021. 

He said the amendment’s backers failed to list what existing laws would be repealed if it passed.

As a result, he ruled the measure was “insufficient” and a “blatant violation” of the statutory requirements. But he declined to immediately issue an injunction to allow time for proponents to appeal ahead of Tuesday’s deadline.

In a brief ahead of Tuesday’s arguments, attorneys for the plaintiffs said the amendment “would repeal Missouri’s ban on abortion that does not disclose to voters that it will repeal Missouri’s ban on abortion.” 

They said the signature petition “defrauded potential signers by failing to disclose any of the many, many provisions of Missouri law it proposes to repeal.” 

They also said that the amendment illegally includes more than one subject, pointing to language protecting “a person’s fundamental right to reproductive freedom.” 

They argue the amendment will have far-reaching effects if it passes, repealing essentially all of Missouri’s existing regulation of abortion, cloning, in vitro fertilization for stem cell research, and gender-affirming care. 

But attorneys for the coalition backing the measure said Limbaugh’s ruling was incorrect and is interfering in direct democracy. 

“The right of the people supersedes the views of public officials,” they wrote. “[Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft] had strong views, for example, on the merits of the initiative petition now known as Amendment 3 … but he has acknowledged the expression of the people’s will and certified Amendment 3 for a vote on the November ballot.”  

The amendment’s backers said a constitutional amendment cannot “repeal” an existing statute — it can only render it invalid.

“Certainly, a change in the Constitution might result in some statutes being found unconstitutional at a later date. But nothing in Amendment 3 would invalidate statutes without further action by the courts or result in repeal without further action from the General Assembly,” the brief stated.