Abortion is still legal in Missouri.
Voters on Tuesday rejected Amendment 3, which would have again banned most abortions in the state with some exceptions.
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The Associated Press made the call with “no” leading with more than 55% of the vote.
It’s an affirmation of the decision by Missouri voters in 2024 to end the state’s near-total abortion ban. Removing the ban then passed with 51.6% of the vote. At the time, Missouri was the first state to overturn an abortion ban at the ballot box.
In addition to banning most abortions, Amendment 3 would have placed within Missouri’s constitution a ban on gender-affirming care for transgender minors.
The failure of Amendment 3 is a blow to Republicans who have repeatedly said Missourians didn’t know what they were voting for when they overturned the abortion ban in 2024.
The Republican-led legislature voted in 2025 to put the amendment before Missourians. It once again banned most abortions but listed more exceptions than the prior ban, which had no exemptions for rape or incest.
Under the new Amendment 3, abortions would have been allowed for rape and incest up to 12 weeks gestation. It also contained exceptions for medical emergencies, ectopic pregnancies and fetal anomalies.
Supporters said with those new exceptions, the new amendment provided a more moderate option for voters. Opponents said the proposal wasn’t moderate at all and disrespected the voters who legalized abortion in 2024.
While the language of the amendment stated “an abortion may be performed or induced upon a woman in cases of medical emergency, fetal anomaly, rape, or incest,” details on how those exceptions would work were not listed.
Those backing Amendment 3 contended the exceptions were enough. Opponents said that they were not practical and that the 12-week limit for instances of rape and incest was too restrictive.
The amendment also would have allowed state legislators to pass laws regulating abortion.
Transgender care
Groups backing the amendment focused numerous ads on banning transgender care for minors.
Lawmakers prohibited such care in 2023. The ban on surgeries, which is rare, is permanent within state law. The portion banning other forms of gender-affirming care like puberty blockers and hormone therapy is set to expire in August 2027.
If Amendment 3 passed, those restrictions would have been in Missouri’s constitution and would not have expired unless a future amendment removed them.
