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It took only two years to get abortion back on the ballot in Missouri.
Advocates on both sides of Missouri’s Amendment 3 spent the day before the election driving home their respective messages.
If Amendment 3 passes, it would repeal the reproductive freedom amendment adopted in 2024 and establish new abortion restrictions. The amendment would preserve exceptions for medical emergencies, fetal anomalies, and in cases of rape and incest before 12 weeks.
It would also require parental or judicial consent for minors seeking an abortion.
Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe made a stop at the Charles B. Wheeler Downtown Airport Monday morning with several pro-life organizations to get out the message to vote "Yes on 3."
Joining his team on the statewide tour was an abortion survivor, as well as a gender detransitioner.
“I’ve experienced first-hand the horrors of living through a childhood gender transition in a state that chose not to protect children,” said Chloe Cole. “My childhood was ripped away from me before I was old enough to understand just what I was losing. And I don’t know if I’m ever going to be able to have children, which has been a huge dream of mine going into adulthood.”
Cole was 13-years-old when she was put on puberty blockers and testosterone. Two years later, she underwent a mastectomy.
She said her parents took her to therapy, hoping they could push off permanent solutions until she was an adult. But instead, she was not given much of a choice.
“There was never a moment where the doctors would stop to ask, ‘What really is wrong with her? And how can we help her without pushing her into a permanent solution?’" said Cole. “They were instantly told, ‘Hey, but this is life or death for your kid. Your kid is almost certainly going to commit suicide if you don’t allow her to become your happy, healthy, transgender son.'"
Cole says she has spent most of her life dealing with physical complications from three gender-affirming treatments she received, which are all irreversible.
“What protection are you offering children like me who were wronged, who were harmed, who regret, and who have to live for the rest of our lives infertile, with no adult sexual function?” said Cole.
Melissa Ohden, an abortion survivor, also spoke about her life experience after surviving a saline-infusion abortion her birth mother chose to undergo years ago.
Her mother was a 19-year-old college student at the time of her abortion, who chose to go through with it after Ohden’s grandmother forced her to.
Ohden says her birth mother was not notified about the unsuccessful abortion, and for 30 years, believed that Ohden had died from the abortion procedure. They have reconnected and both reside in Missouri today.
“This summer, Missouri passed a law to protect babies like me who survive abortions — and that matters. But a Born-Alive law only protects the child who makes it out alive. It does nothing to stop the abortion in the first place,” said Ohden.
Newly added into this year’s Amendment 3 are constitutional restrictions on gender-transition surgeries, cross-sex hormones and puberty blocking medications for minors.
Emily Wales with Planned Parenthood Great Plains says putting abortion and gender transition in the same amendment was intentional.
“Disingenuous is the nicest way to describe what the legislature is doing,” said Wales. “The legislature did this intentionally, because they know people do feel strongly about abortion rights, and they know they’ve already lost on that issue. So they combined two issues — gender affirming care for youth and also abortion access — because they are hoping to deceive, confuse, trick people into voting to give up the rights they’ve established for abortion.”
Wales went on to say gender-affirming care for youth is already outlawed in Missouri. But Governor Mike Kehoe made the point that parts of the ban are set to expire in 2027.
He was asked during the press event why the legislature did not vote to extend it.
“There have been several different – I would say attempts, amendments to different bills, etc. I don’t think it would go away. The legislature would continue to try to extend it. This ensures it. This ensures it, so I think this is better than even what the legislature could probably do,” said Kehoe.
Amendment 3 does include several exceptions for the abortion ban. However, Wales believes exceptions do not actually ensure people get the standard of care.
“There’s a reason that the American Medical Association, the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology all say that exceptions do not actually ensure people’s rights are protected. And at the end of the day, what you don’t want is to have to go to politicians and say is this abortion or is this healthcare okay with you?” said Wales.
However voters choose to cast their ballots on Tuesday, voices on both sides urge people to do their research and show up at the polls.
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