(NewsNation) — Voters passed constitutional amendments enshrining abortion rights in states where Donald Trump, with shifting stances on abortion, is projected to win the presidential race.
Ten states presented voters with the option to protect abortion access in the first presidential election since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.
A ballot measure in Florida garnered support from 57% of voters, falling just short of the 60% it needed to pass.
The results could indicate a disconnect between voters’ values on a central issue and those of their preferred candidate. Alternatively, protecting abortion access may be a comfort to voters who support Trump but aren’t clear on his views about abortion.
About 6 in 10 Americans think their state should generally allow a person to obtain a legal abortion if they don’t want to be pregnant for any reason, according to polling from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.
Trump’s views on abortion
Trump has gone back and forth on abortion rights.
On Tuesday, he avoided answering a reporter’s question about how he voted on Florida’s abortion amendment.
“Just stop talking about that,” Trump said the second time a reporter asked him about the ballot measure.
“We did a great job, and then we brought it back to the states, as you know, I believe in exceptions as well,” Trump continued.
The U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, launching a national push to have voters decide abortion laws at the state level. At the time, Trump touted his appointment of three conservative judges who influenced the ruling.
During the September presidential debate, Trump falsely said Democrats support abortions in the third trimester and after birth. No state in the country allows termination after birth.
He also refused to commit to vetoing a national abortion ban but has said on several occasions that decisions about abortion access should be left to the states.
Nevada
Nevada Question 6 asked, “Should the Nevada Constitution be amended to create an individual’s fundamental right to an abortion, without interference by state or local governments, whenever the abortion is performed by a qualified healthcare professional until fetal viability or when necessary to protect the health or life of the pregnant individual at any point during the pregnancy?”
Sixty-three percent of people voted in favor of the measure, while 35.8% opposed it, according to Decision Desk HQ (DDHQ) totals, with 86% of precincts reporting.
Montana
Montana voted to pass an amendment to the state constitution to provide a right “to make and carry out decisions about one’s own pregnancy, including the right to abortion.”
The measure will prohibit the government from denying or burdening the right to abortion before fetal viability. It also bars the government from denying or burdening access to an abortion when a treating health care professional determines it is medically indicated to protect the pregnant patient’s life or health.
CI-128 prevents the government from penalizing patients, health care providers, or “anyone who assists someone in exercising their right to make and carry out voluntary decisions about their pregnancy.”
Montana voters also cast their ballots in support of Trump. The former president is projected to win the state, with 58.8% of votes and about 92% of precincts reporting as of early Wednesday afternoon.
Florida
Florida’s Amendment 4 said, “No law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the patient’s health, as determined by the patient’s healthcare provider. This amendment does not change the Legislature’s constitutional authority to require notification to a parent or guardian before a minor has an abortion.”
Fifty-seven percent of people voted in favor of the measure, while 42% opposed it, according to DDHQ totals, with more than 95% of precincts reporting.
Missouri
Trump is projected to win Missouri, where voters passed a constitutional amendment that guarantees the right to reproductive care.
Missouri Amendment 3 states:
“Do you want to amend the Missouri Constitution to: establish a right to make decisions about reproductive health care, including abortion and contraceptives, with any governmental interference of that right presumed invalid; remove Missouri’s ban on abortion; allow regulation of reproductive health care to improve or maintain the health of the patient; require the government not to discriminate, in government programs, funding, and other activities, against persons providing or obtaining reproductive health care; and allow abortion to be restricted or banned after Fetal Viability except to protect the life or health of the woman?”
The measure passed with support from more than 74% of voters.
Arizona
DDHQ hasn’t called the presidential race in Arizona yet. As of about 1 p.m. CT Wednesday, Trump claimed 52% of votes, compared to 47.2% for Vice President Kamala Harris. Those numbers are based on about 67% of precincts reporting at the time.
Arizona voters did, however, approve Proposition 139, which “creates a fundamental right to abortion. Limits the state’s ability to interfere with that right before fetal viability.”
After fetal viability, abortions are allowed when necessary to protect the life or health of the pregnant individual. The measure blocks laws penalizing a person for helping someone else obtain an abortion.
This story is developing. Download our NewsNation app for 24/7 fact-based unbiased coverage.
