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By Aliss Higham
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Supporters of reproductive care and abortion rights secured victories in three states during Tuesday's midterm elections, as voters approved constitutional protections in Nevada and Virginia and rejected an attempt to reinstate abortion restrictions in Missouri.
However, voters in Idaho rejected a proposal to loosen the state's near-total abortion ban, marking a setback for advocates who have worked to expand access to the procedure after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in its 2022 Dobbs decision. The ruling ended the federal constitutional right to abortion, leaving it up to states to determine their own restrictions and protections.
Since then, Americans' access to abortion care has become dependent on the jurisdiction in which they live. According to an October analysis by the health policy research organization KFF, 13 states currently enforce near total bans on abortion, while six states restrict abortions after six to 12 weeks of pregnancy. Other states allow abortion up to fetal viability—the point in a pregnancy when a fetus has the capacity to survive outside the uterus—which is generally considered to be around 23 to 24 weeks of pregnancy.
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Differing restrictions at the state level have made ballot initiatives a key part of the national debate over reproductive rights. Since Roe v. Wade was overturned, abortion-related measures have appeared on ballots in 11 states. Tuesday's elections offered another test of those protections, including in Missouri and Nevada, where voters were asked to revisit decisions made two years earlier.
The votes took place alongside midterm elections in which Democrats not only won control of both chambers of Congress but also made gains in gubernatorial and state legislature races.
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Missouri
Voters in Missouri rejected Amendment 3, a Republican-backed proposal that would have repealed abortion protections approved by voters two years earlier. With 99 percent of votes counted, 55.5 percent voted against the amendment, compared with 45.5 percent for.
In 2024, Missouri became the first state to overturn an existing abortion ban through a statewide ballot initiative. The measure established Missourians' right to an abortion until fetal viability. The state also allows abortions later than this if the procedure is necessary to protect the life and health of the mother.
However, the Republican-controlled state legislature subsequently approved another constitutional amendment to be considered by voters on November 3. It would have restored restrictions on most abortions, with exceptions for medical emergencies, fetal abnormalities and cases of rape and incest up to 12 weeks of pregnancy.
The rejection of the ballot means existing constitutional protections for abortion rights remain in place.
Virginia
Virginia voters approved Question 1, which establishes a constitutional "fundamental right to reproductive freedom." The amendment, approved by 62.4 percent of voters with 96 percent of ballots counted, protects access to abortion care during the first two trimesters of pregnancy. It also creates a right to contraceptive and fertility care.
The amendment also allows the state government to pass laws permitting regular abortion care in the third trimester in cases where it is medically necessary, such as to protect life or when the fetus is not viable.
Virginia already allowed abortion up to the 24-week mark, so the amendment will not make any immediate changes to reproductive health care access. However, making it part of the state constitution will likely make it more difficult for future legislatures to pass abortion restrictions.
Nevada
Nevadans have approved Question 6, which also establishes a constitutional right to abortion until fetal viability. The amendment also protects access to abortion care after viability to protect the life of the mother.
Results show 63.3 percent voted in favor of the amendment, compared with 36.7 percent against, with 85 percent of the vote counted.
Unlike other measures considered on Tuesday, Nevada's proposal had already received voter approval in a previous election, with voters backing Question 6 in November 2024. The Silver State's constitution requires proposed amendments to receive approval in two consecutive elections before they can take effect.
Like Virginia, Nevada already allows abortion up to 24 weeks of pregnancy, so the amendment will provide stronger protections against any attempts to pass more restrictive abortion rules.
Idaho
Idaho voters bucked the trend by rejecting Proposition 1, or the Reproductive Freedom and Privacy Act Initiative, which would have established a statutory right to abortion care up until fetal viability.
With 95 percent of votes counted, 56 percent voted against the proposal, compared with 44 percent in favor.
Idaho has some of the country's most restrictive abortion laws, prohibiting the procedure at any point in pregnancy—with narrow exceptions to save the pregnant woman's life or during the first trimester in cases of rape or incest that have been reported to law enforcement.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Ben Kelly and Shakeema Edwards.
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