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Abortion rights went 3-for-4 on the ballot, and Missouri voters refused to give theirs back

Nevada and Virginia wrote abortion rights into their constitutions; Missouri crushed a repeal. Idaho was the lone loss.

Published 2026-11-04

Voters approved abortion-rights amendments in Nevada and Virginia and defeated Missouri's Amendment 3, which would have repealed the right voters approved in 2024. Idaho's Proposition 1, which would have created a statutory right, was defeated.

Two years after the post-Roe ballot wave, voters were asked again. Here's how it went, according to Ballotpedia News.

The scorecard

• Nevada Question 6: Approved. It establishes a constitutional right to abortion until fetal viability, and afterward when needed to protect the mother's life or health. The State Court Report says it passed with more than 60%, and that this was the second straight cycle Nevada voters approved it, as the state requires for constitutional changes.
• Virginia Question 1: Approved. It establishes a constitutional right to reproductive freedom, including abortion before the third trimester and afterward under specified circumstances, per Ballotpedia News.
• Missouri Amendment 3: Defeated. It would have repealed the reproductive-freedom amendment voters passed in 2024 and banned abortion with exceptions. With 98% of the expected vote counted, No led 1,173,172 (55.5%) to 941,065 (44.5%), and it was called at 11:18 p.m. ET Tuesday, per Exa.
• Idaho Proposition 1: Defeated. It would have set a statutory right to make reproductive health decisions, including abortion until viability. About 56% voted no, keeping the state's ban in place, per the State Court Report.

Missouri's bait-and-switch didn't work

Lawmakers packaged the repeal with a ban on gender-transition treatment for minors. Exa's summary says the amendment would have allowed abortion only for medical emergencies or fetal anomalies, or for rape or incest up to 12 weeks, per Exa. The State Court Report notes that abortion opponents fought to put both questions in one measure, so both went down together. Missourians also approved a measure requiring 80% of both legislative chambers, plus voter approval, before lawmakers can repeal or change a voter-approved initiative.

The bigger picture

In the NBC News exit poll, 64% of voters said abortion should be legal in most or all cases, just below the 65% in 2024. According to Ballotpedia News, voters decided a record 11 abortion measures in 2024, and from 1970 through 2025 they approved 27 of 65.

The takeaway: when abortion is on the ballot by itself, rights usually win. Missouri tried to put voters' own 2024 decision back on the ballot, and voters said no.

Sources

1. Voters approved abortion rights measures in two states, Nevada and Virginia, rejected a rights measure in Idaho, and a repeal in Missouri — Ballotpedia News
2. What 2026 Ballot Measure Results Tell Us — State Court Report
3. 2026 Missouri Amendment 3 results — Exa Election Library
4. NBC News Exit Poll: Democrats' victory, Trump and the economy — NBC News