A coalition of Missouri abortion-rights groups launched a campaign last week to get a constitutional amendment to partially legalize abortion on the 2024 statewide ballot.
Missouri has one of the strictest abortion bans in the country.
Missourians for Constitutional Freedom — which has the support of Abortion Action Missouri, the ACLU of Missouri and Planned Parenthood affiliates in Kansas City and St. Louis — is gathering signatures for an initiative petition that would make the procedure legal up to “fetal viability.” That is typically between 20-25 weeks gestation.
“Missourians continue to show up and support this initiative because it's something our state really wants and frankly, we really need,” Tori Schafer, an attorney for the ACLU of Missouri, told KCUR’s Up To Date.
The campaign raised more than $1.1 million in donations on the first day after it launched. However, it still needs to raise millions more and gather over 171,000 signatures to qualify for the state’s November ballot.
- Tori Schafer, attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Missouri
- Emily Wales, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Great Plains