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Sept. 5, 2024Jefferson City, Mo. |  By: Jeremy Werner

Judge strikes down Ashcroft's ballot language for abortion rights vote

abortion

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - A Cole County judge has struck down Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft’s "fair ballot language" for the Nov. 5 abortion-rights question, saying it violated state law.

Judge Cotton Walker ruled on Thursday that Ashcroft’s wording was "unfair, inaccurate, insufficient and misleading."

Ashcroft’s version claimed that a "yes" vote would enshrine abortion rights "at any time of a pregnancy" and prevent legal recourse against abortion providers. Pro-abortion rights advocates sued, arguing the language was misleading.

Walker rewrote the statement to clarify that a "yes" vote would establish a constitutional right to reproductive health care decisions, including abortion, remove Missouri’s abortion ban, and allow regulation after fetal viability.

The judge’s revision aligns closely with the official ballot summary.