Results for abortion-related ballot measures, 2024

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Ballot Measure Election Results, 2024

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On November 5, 2024, voters decided on 11 abortion-related ballot measures—the most on record for a single year.

Ten addressed state constitutional rights to abortion. Voters approved seven of them in Arizona, Colorado, Maryland, Missouri, Montana, New York, and Nevada, while three were defeated in Florida, Nebraska, and South Dakota.

One, in Nebraska, to limit the timeframe for when an abortion can be performed was approved.

This page provides election results for the abortion-related ballot measures, as well as reactions, campaign finance, and historical ballot measure context. Click on the links below to find the following:

Watchlist

See also: Ballotpedia's Top 15 Ballot Measures and Trends to Watch, 2024

Ballotpedia compiled a list of 15 ballot measures and trends to watch on November 5, 2024. The following abortion-related measures were included due to their unique contexts: higher threshold for approval, presidential swing states, and competing measures.

  • Florida Amendment 4: Amendment 4 was defeated. The ballot measure would have provided for a state constitutional right to abortion and was among the most-watched ballot measures, including among other abortion-related measures, for a few reasons: (1) Florida had the largest population among the states considering abortion-related measures. (2) Florida trended more Republican in recent elections. (3) Florida required a 60% vote to approve constitutional amendments, which is a higher threshold compared to other states deciding on abortion measures.
  • Arizona Proposition 139 and Nevada Question 6: Of the 10 states voting on abortion-related ballot measures, the two states with the closest results in the last presidential election were in the Southwest: Arizona and Nevada. Both ballot initiatives were approved, providing for state constitutional rights to abortion. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) issued a memo saying the ballot measures guarantee "that reproductive freedom will remain a driving issue for voters this November," and that "House Republicans’ extremism will cost them in states with abortion ballot initiatives."[1] James Blair, the political director for Trump's campaign, said, "In many ways, the ballot initiatives, one could argue, are favorable to Republicans because it allows a voter to exercise their judgments on abortion policy and their state on the one hand while exercising judgment on who should serve as president [on the other]."[2]
  • Nebraska Initiative 434 and Initiative 439: Voters in Nebraska decided on competing ballot measures on abortion. Initiative 434 was approved, prohibiting abortions after the first trimester in the Nebraska Constitution. Initiative 439, which would have provided for a state constitutional right to abortion, was defeated. In Nebraska, when two conflicting measures are approved, the measure with the most affirmative votes supersedes the other one at points of conflict. However, Initiative 434 was approved, and Initiative 439 was defeated.

Results

See also: 2024 ballot measure election results

Summary

The following table summarizes the ballot measure outcomes:

Outcome of abortion-related state ballot measures, 2024
Topic Approved Defeated
Constitutional right to abortion 7 (70%) 3 (30%)
Prohibit abortion after first trimester 1 (100%) 0 (0%)

State

The following table lists the 11 abortion-related state ballot measures, including their election results.

State Type Title Description Result Yes Votes No Votes
AZ

CICA

Proposition 139 Provide for a state constitutional right to abortion

Approveda

2,000,287 (62%)

1,246,202 (38%)

CO

CICA

Amendment 79 Provide for a state constitutional right to abortion and repeal provision banning the use of public funds for abortions

Approveda

1,921,593 (62%)

1,179,261 (38%)

FL

CICA

Amendment 4 Provide for a state constitutional right to abortion before fetal viability

Defeated

6,070,758 (57%)

4,548,379 (43%)

MD

LRCA

Question 1 Provide for a state constitutional right to reproductive freedom, defined to include abortion

Approveda

2,199,319 (76%)

692,219 (24%)

MO

CICA

Amendment 3 Provide for a state constitutional right to reproductive freedom, defined to include abortion

Approveda

1,538,659 (52%)

1,443,022 (48%)

MT

CICA

CI-128 Provide for a state constitutional right to abortion before fetal viability

Approveda

345,070 (58%)

252,300 (42%)

NE

CICA

Initiative 434 Prohibit abortion after the first trimester, except in cases of medical emergencies or if the pregnancy is the result of sexual assault or incest

Approveda

509,288 (55%)

417,624 (45%)

NE

CICA

Initiative 439 Provide for a state constitutional right to abortion before fetal viability

Defeated

455,184 (49%)

473,652 (51%)

NV

CICA

Question 6 Provide for a state constitutional right to abortion before fetal viability

Approveda

905,170 (64%)

501,232 (36%)

NY

LRCA

Proposal 1 Provide that people cannot be denied rights based on their "ethnicity, national origin, age, and disability" or "sex, including sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive healthcare and autonomy"

Approveda

4,757,097 (62%)

2,857,663 (38%)

SD

CICA

Constitutional Amendment G Provide for a state constitutional right to abortion with a trimester framework for regulations

Defeated

176,809 (41%)

250,136 (59%)


Local

The following table lists two abortion-related local ballot measures, including their election results.

Jurisdiction State Type Title Description Result Yes Votes No Votes
San Francisco CA

Initiative

Proposition O Enact a series of local policies about reproductive healthcare and abortion services

Approveda

312,914 (84%)

60,335 (16%)

Amarillo TX

Initiative

Proposition A Designate Amarillo as a Sanctuary City for the Unborn and enact local regulations and restrictions on abortion

Defeated

27,579 (41%)

40,442 (59%)


Reactions

Reactions to the election results from national political figures and organizations involved in abortion-related politics will be posted here. Note: You can share reactions from national figures and organizations, along with source URLs for this information, with us at editor@ballotpedia.org.

  • Planned Parenthood Action Fund: "Abortion was a defining issue of the 2024 election with reproductive freedom ballot measures winning in Arizona, Colorado, Maryland, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, and New York, where voters enshrined abortion rights in their state constitutions. Millions of Americans turned out to support abortion access and reproductive rights champions — and they will continue to do so."[3]
  • Chris Melody Fields Figueredo, Executive Director of the Ballot Initiative Strategy Center: "I don’t want people to think just because they voted ‘yes’ to protect reproductive rights there is going to be a magic wand to restore those rights. They’re going to have to double down and fight to make sure people are going to receive the reproductive care they need and deserve."[4]
  • Mini Timmaraju, the president of Reproductive Freedom for All: "We started seeing some troubling indicators that in some of these states, the ballot measures were almost creating a permission structure for some folks who were die-hard Republicans but movable on abortion to vote for the ballot measure and then justify voting for Trump."[5]
  • Marjorie Dannenfelser, President of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America: "We celebrate the lives that will be saved with the defeat of pro-abortion ballot measures in Florida, Nebraska and South Dakota. Voters stopped the lies of Kamala Harris, George Soros, Gov. Pritzker, and the abortion industry from invading their state and removing laws that protect unborn children and women. The pro-life states of Florida, Nebraska and South Dakota have disrupted abortion activists’ track record, showing the path forward is to fight for life following the examples of Gov. Ron DeSantis, Sen. Pete Ricketts and Rep. Dusty Johnson. ... If the playing field is evened by pro-life elected officials fighting back, life wins. Abortion activists’ lies do not prevail when Republicans devote money and messaging to the truth."[6]
  • Jeanne Mancini, President of March for Life: " [March for Life] applauds the people of Florida, South Dakota and Nebraska for seeing through an onslaught of well-funded lies and rejecting the radical, destructive abortion ballot initiatives thus protecting women, families, and the unborn in the states. Through these three victories, it’s clear that when voters know the truth about dangerous and far-reaching abortion amendments appearing on their ballots, they reject them wholeheartedly."[7]

Campaign finance

See also: Ballot measure campaign finance, 2024

The following table lists the statewide ballot measures, support and opposition contributions for each measure, and the post-election outcome of each measure.

Ballot Measure Support Contributions Oppose Contributions Outcome
Arizona Proposition 139, Right to Abortion Initiative (2024) $36,041,279.99 $1,357,980.67 Approved
Colorado Amendment 79, Right to Abortion and Health Insurance Coverage Initiative (2024) $9,779,817.67 $566,895.29 Approved
Florida Amendment 4, Right to Abortion Initiative (2024) $121,766,030.11 $13,465,285.89 Defeated
Maryland Question 1, Right to Reproductive Freedom Amendment (2024) $1,225,500.67 $406,110.86 Approved
Missouri Amendment 3, Right to Reproductive Freedom Initiative (2024) $31,473,847.68 $1,983,278.62 Approved
Montana CI-128, Right to Abortion Initiative (2024) $18,228,896.18 $222,502.58 Approved
Nebraska Initiative 434, Prohibit Abortions After the First Trimester Amendment (2024) $12,717,121.85 $15,898,591.96 Approved
Nebraska Initiative 439, Right to Abortion Initiative (2024) $15,898,591.96 $12,717,121.85 Defeated
Nevada Question 6, Right to Abortion Initiative (2024) $13,201,142.51 $0.00 Approved
New York Proposal 1, Equal Protection of Law Amendment (2024) $7,334,067.61 $571,226.22 Approved
South Dakota Constitutional Amendment G, Right to Abortion Initiative (2024) $1,606,703.65 $1,255,420.80 Defeated

Note: The PAC that supported Nebraska Initiative 434 opposed Initiative 439, and the PAC that supported Initiative 439 opposed Initiative 434

Historical context

See also: History of abortion ballot measures

Abortion has been a topic for statewide ballot measures since the 1970s. However, in 2022, following Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, a then-record number of abortion-related measures were on the ballot.

The most recent vote on an abortion-related ballot measure was Ohio Issue 1, which voters approved on November 7, 2023. Issue 1 provided a state constitutional right to "make and carry out one’s own reproductive decisions," including decisions about abortion, contraception, and other reproductive matters.[8]

In 2022, there were six ballot measures addressing abortion. Measures were approved in California, Michigan, and Vermont. Measures were defeated in Kansas, Kentucky, and Montana.

From 1970 to November 2023, there were 54 abortion-related ballot measures, and 43 (80%) of these had the support of organizations that described themselves as pro-life. Voters approved 11 (26%) and rejected 32 (74%) of these 43 ballot measures. The other 11 abortion-related ballot measures had the support of organizations that described themselves as pro-choice or pro-reproductive rights. Voters approved eight (73%) and rejected three (27%).

Before Roe v. Wade in 1973, three abortion-related measures were on the ballot in Michigan, North Dakota, and Washington, and each was designed to allow abortion in its respective state.

The following table provides a scorecard on abortion-related ballot measures based on proposed policies or topics since 1970. You can view the complete list here.

Abortion-related ballot measures by topic and outcome, 1970 - 2024
Topic Total Approved Approved (%) Defeated Defeated (%)
Campaigns described as pro-choice/pro-reproductive rights 21 15 71.4% 6 28.6%
Constitutional rights 14 11 78.6% 3 21.4%
Laws to expand abortion 6 4 66.7% 2 33.3%
Allow public funding[9] 2 1 50.0% 1 50.0%
Campaigns described as pro-life[10] 44 12 27.3% 32 72.7%
Constitutional interpretation 8 4 50.0% 4 50.0%
Personhood amendments 6 0 0.0% 6 100.0%
Laws to regulate abortion 10 1 10.0% 9 90.0%
Prohibit public funding[10] 11 3 27.3% 8 72.7%
Parental notification 9 4 44.4% 5 55.6%
Practitioner requirements 2 0 0.0% 2 100.0%

See also

Footnotes