STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
Ten states had ballot initiatives on abortion yesterday - different proposed rules for different states. So let's catch up on what happened with NPR's Elissa Nadworny, who covers reproductive rights. Good morning.
ELISSA NADWORNY, BYLINE: Good morning.
INSKEEP: OK, so what were the results?
NADWORNY: Well, you know, most states that considered abortion rights amendments approved them. So a number of states already protected abortion to some extent. So the question in front of voters there was to put that protection into the state constitution. So there are five of them - Montana, Colorado, Nevada, New York and Maryland. All of these passed. In the case of Nevada, the amendment has to be approved again by voters in 2026. And then in Colorado, the measure that passed also allows the state to fund abortion coverage.
INSKEEP: OK.
NADWORNY: So that's a big change.
INSKEEP: OK. So the state can fund abortion. That's very interesting. It has to do with money. Each of these is different sets of rules for different states. Not all of them succeeded. You said most passed. What failed?
NADWORNY: So in South Dakota, which has a near-total abortion ban, the proposed amendment there would have allowed abortions in the first trimester - or about 12 weeks - and then add more restrictions in the second and prohibit abortions in the third trimester, with some exceptions. That failed to pass. Some abortion rights groups said the amendment was too weak, so they didn't really fund it. And actually, antiabortion group campaigning to defeat the ballot raised more money. So not a surprise that that failed. And then the ballot initiative in Florida - that would have protected abortion up to the point of viability. That failed to reach the 60% threshold it needed to pass.
INSKEEP: Oh, yeah - 60%. Had a big majority - 57%...
NADWORNY: Exactly.
INSKEEP: ...But not enough under Florida law. Would you help me understand what happened in Nebraska?
NADWORNY: Yeah. So there were two competing initiatives there. Voters approved an amendment that prohibits abortion after the first trimester. That's about 12 weeks and is in line with current law. That's the one that goes into the state constitution. The competing ballot initiative would have allowed abortion up to viability. That failed to pass. And actually, if both had passed, whoever got the most votes would have won.
INSKEEP: OK. So you've told us a lot here.
NADWORNY: Yes.
INSKEEP: But now give me an idea about where access to abortion is significantly going to change because of voting yesterday.
NADWORNY: Exactly. This is the big headline. So there are big changes in Missouri. One of the strictest abortion bans in the country - voters approved an amendment that will guarantee abortion access up to the point of fetal viability, so that's about 24 weeks of pregnancy. Now, Missouri was the first state to ban abortion, even in cases of rape and only with an exception for medical emergencies, after Roe v. Wade fell in 2022. So that's a huge change there. Another big win for abortion rights supporters - voters in Arizona passed a measure protecting abortion up to fetal viability. Current law bans abortion after 15 weeks, so access there will expand.
INSKEEP: Did anything particularly surprise you among all these results you've just gone through?
NADWORNY: You know, Steve, I would say Florida was really interesting. I mean, there's a six-week ban there now, and a majority of voters approved expanding abortion access - like you said, 57%. But it wasn't enough to reach that 60% threshold which was set for amendments in 2006. Now, what this means for Florida is that the six-week ban stays in place. Now, the South is really lacking access to abortion. And Florida, before that ban came into to place, was a place where a lot of people in the South traveled to get an abortion. So now, if you live in Florida, if you live in the South, you're past six weeks, you have to drive to North Carolina or Virginia to get care.
INSKEEP: OK. So the law stays the same in Florida. NPR's Elissa Nadworny, thanks so much.
NADWORNY: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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