Missouri Secretary of State

In a ruling Monday, Circuit Judge Jon Beetem wrote that the summaries crafted by Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft were "argumentative" or unfairly biased against the abortion rights ballot initiatives, and ignored their protections for contraceptives.. Beetem rewrote each of the six ballot summaries himself.

A judge heard arguments over a series of proposed amendments to Missouri's constitution seeking to legalize abortion, this time over the ballot language proposed by Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft. The ACLU argued that Ashcroft's summary was biased against the amendments, like a "referee playing for one of the teams."

To comply with a rule from Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, public libraries in the state now require kids as old as 17 to have adult permission to get a library card. The rule also prohibits libraries from buying materials that are "obscene," but librarians say that's dangerously vague.

A new statewide rule introduced by Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft has librarians concerned for their ability to curate their collections in a way that serves the entire community.

Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft wrote in the official ballot language for a proposed abortion rights amendment that it would “allow for dangerous, unregulated, and unrestricted abortions." The ACLU sued, saying that the description was "misleading" and unfairly biased against the initiative.

A new St. Charles City-County library policy requires anyone under 18 to have a parent or guardian present to sign up for a library card. The move came in response to new rules from Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft threatening funding for libraries over "age-inappropriate" materials.

The new policies are a reaction to rules from Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft that ban libraries from “age-inappropriate” displays for teens and children. Staff of Mid-Continent Public Library say the policies are confusing, and point to a work environment that is not inclusive of LGBTQ staff.

A right-wing campaign has targeted a once-obscure voting partnership called ERIC. Missouri and seven other Republican states have now pulled out, giving the election denial movement a big win — and a blueprint for 2024.

Emails show Missouri Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick’s office completed its work on the cost estimate for an abortion rights ballot issue, but Attorney General Andrew Bailey refused to give what has traditionally been considered perfunctory approval — and demanded the auditor falsely inflate the numbers.

The ACLU filed a lawsuit after Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey attempted to convince the state auditor’s office to falsely increase the projected cost of the abortion amendment. Because Bailey refused to sign off on the fiscal note, the ballot summary can't be finalized — something that was supposed to be done by May 1.

The proposals would amend the constitution to declare that the “government shall not infringe upon a person’s fundamental right to reproductive freedom.” Supporters of the abortion rights petition argue that the Missouri attorney general acted unlawfully when he pressed the state auditor to increase the projected cost of the proposal — holding up its approval and preventing supporters from gathering signatures.

Missouri is one of a growing number of places where government funding is being deployed as the newest weapon in the fight over books. Beginning May 30, a new state rule could deny state funding to libraries over books deemed inappropriate for young readers — although it's not clear how it will be enforced.