Abortion rights amendments pass in Nevada and Virginia

Tuesday's results followed a record year for abortion-related ballot measures in 2024, when voters decided 11 statewide measures. The US Supreme Court's 2022 decision overturning the nationwide right to abortion gave states greater authority to set their own abortion policies, and since that ruling voters in more than one-fifth of states have approved ballot measures protecting abortion rights.

In Nevada, Question 6, which establishes a "fundamental right to abortion", was leading 62.3% to 37.7% with 86% of Nevada votes counted when the Associated Press called the race. The amendment enshrines abortion rights in the state constitution, permanently protecting access to abortion through the second trimester after a second referendum on the measure, and allows the state to regulate abortion after viability except when medically necessary to "protect the life or health of the pregnant patient".

Virginia voters approved a constitutional amendment establishing a "fundamental right to reproductive freedom". The measure protects access to abortion during the first two trimesters, permits government regulation in the third trimester while preserving access when necessary to protect the life or health of the pregnant woman, and establishes rights to contraception and fertility care, among other protections.

In Missouri, voters rejected by 55% to 45% a measure placed on the ballot by the Republican-led legislature. Amendment 3 would have repealed the constitutional right to reproductive freedom approved in 2024, restricted abortion and prohibited gender transition surgeries and certain other procedures for minors. It would have banned abortion except in cases of rape and incest during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy, or later in cases involving fetal anomalies.

Voters in Idaho rejected an effort to repeal the state's abortion ban, leaving in place restrictions that took effect in 2022 following the Supreme Court's decision overturning Roe v Wade.

Reproductive Freedom for All, a pro-choice organization, wrote on social media: "The American people sent a clear message: Our government belongs to us, not the extremists who have spent years attacking our fundamental freedoms. By taking back the House and Senate, voters have put a powerful check on Trump and his attacks on reproductive freedom." The Center for Reproductive Rights said in a statement: "What. a. night. The future of our reproductive rights will be shaped by the actions elected officials take. The work ahead MUST include protecting access to abortion and advancing federal safeguards for reproductive freedom."

The ballot results came alongside Democratic victories in House and Senate races in which candidates made reproductive healthcare a central issue. Abdul El-Sayed, a progressive doctor who won Michigan's Senate race, emphasized the right to personal healthcare decisions throughout his campaign and repeatedly highlighted his Republican opponent Mike Rogers' support for extreme abortion bans. In New Hampshire, Chris Pappas won his Senate race after making opponent John Sununu's support for an abortion ban a central issue, along with Sununu's support for Justice Samuel Alito, who authored the Dobbs decision. Jon Ossoff won re-election in Georgia after challenging Republican opponent Mike Collins over his previous support for a total abortion ban, pressing Collins during a Senate debate to explain why his stance had changed.