Leaked SCOTUS opinion suggests Kansas will hold nation’s first post-Roe abortion vote
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What does overturning Roe v. Wade mean for KS, MO?
Kansas and Missouri now have more control over abortion access in their state following the Roe v. Wade, a landmark 1973 court ruling that established abortion as a constitutional right. Here’s what that looks like.
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Hours after the leak of the U.S. Supreme Court’s draft opinion overturning Roe v. Wade, a Kansas group seeking to retain state-level abortion protections posted a fundraising plea.
“On August 2, Kansas will face the first vote on reproductive freedom in the US following this decision. The constitutional amendment on the KS ballot will pave the way for a total ban on abortion. We must vote NO! Help us fight back!” Kansans for Constitutional Freedom tweeted.
For more than a year, anti-abortion and abortion rights activists in Kansas have been preparing for an August 2022 vote that will determine whether the right to an abortion remains in the Kansas Constitution.
Monday’s Supreme Court news, first reported by Politico, raises the stakes of that ballot initiative. If the final court decision, expected in June or July, doesn’t vary much from the leaked draft, Kansas will hold the first statewide referendum on abortion in a post-Roe world. It will test the two sides political arguments while shaping abortion access in the Midwest for decades to come.
Anti-abortion groups campaigning to pass the amendment, named Value Them Both, insist the court’s opinion is irrelevant.
They’ve carefully focused their political energy on the August vote, avoiding questions about whether they will seek a total ban on abortion if it passes. Brittany Jones, a lobbyist for Kansas Family Voice, acknowledged that the “discussion” would be possible.
“No matter what the U.S. Supreme Court decides on abortion, as of now Kansas will remain a destination for painful late-term abortions and clinics with no health and safety standards — among the most extreme states in the nation. If Kansans want to stop this, they must vote YES,” The Value Them Both campaign said in a Facebook post Tuesday. Currently abortion clinics in Kansas are subject to the same health and safety standards as other medical clinics in the state.
The constitutional amendment seeks to overturn a 2019 state Supreme Court ruling, which determined that the Kansas Constitution included a right to bodily autonomy and abortion.
Under the ruling, most major restrictions on abortion in the state are considered unconstitutional, though abortion access remains limited with only three clinics statewide.
National spotlight
As of February, the main group campaigning for the amendment, the Value Them Both PAC, had raised more than $1.2 million. Kansans for Constitutional Freedom, the coalition of abortion rights groups, had raised around $460,000.
A rollback of federal abortion protections, though, is likely to draw national attention and dollars to the state.
“I think that that would galvanize Kansans to vote to keep their rights,” Rep. Stephanie Clayton, an Overland Park Democrat, said. But, she acknowledged it would also motivate anti-abortion voters.
If federal abortion restrictions are overturned, Kansas will become a major outpost for abortion access in the Midwest. Most abortions would immediately become illegal in Missouri and Oklahoma as well as much of the southern United States.
Kansas saw a significant jump in abortions for out-of-state patients in 2020 when neighboring states shut down abortion access during the pandemic.
A Kansas Department of Health and Environment report released last week found abortions increased in Kansas by 4.1% in 2021. Roughly half were for out-of-state women, with the highest proportion coming from Missouri. No abortions were performed after the 22nd week of pregnancy.
Kansas clinics have been preparing for increased demand after the Supreme Court issues a formal ruling.
“We already have these problems with access,” said Zachary Gingrich-Gaylord, a spokesman for the Trust Women abortion clinic in Wichita. “In Kansas the constitutional protection for abortion care is critically important as we go forward into a post-Roe world.”
“There have been parts of this country that have been essentially post-Roe for decades.”
What’s next?
If the constitutional amendment fails, Kansas lawmakers would be barred from banning abortion, even if a ban is allowed under federal law. If the amendment passes, lawmakers could institute a wide range of abortion bans and restrictions.
Most Kansas lawmakers have been guarded about what they would do if the amendment is approved. Attorney General Derek Schmidt, who is running for governor, said in a statement that he would not comment until a formal Supreme Court opinion was issued.
U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall refused to say whether he favored a ban on abortion, instead insisting the future of abortion access in Kansas should be in the hands of voters.
“In Kansas we must keep our focus on passing Value Them Both this August. Regardless of how the U.S. Supreme Court ultimately rules, without passage of Value Them Both Kansas will be a leading destination for late term abortions,” House Majority Leader Dan Hawkins, a Wichita Republican, said.
But abortion rights activists have insisted that conservative lawmakers would follow the lead of neighboring states and seek to outlaw abortion.
Tennessee and Louisiana, which passed similar constitutional amendments in 2014 and 2020, each now have trigger laws to ban abortion once it is allowable under federal law.
“There could be no clearer sign as to what’s to come than the draft of the Supreme Court opinion,” Emily Wales, CEO of Planned Parenthood Great Plains, said in a press conference.
Last month, Trevor Jacobs, a far-right Fort Scott Republican, introduced a bill that would ban abortion in nearly all cases, including rape and incest. Jacobs did not return a call from The Star seeking comment.
When the bill was introduced, Jones of Kansas Family Voice dismissed the position as fringe.
She reiterated that stance Tuesday.
“It’s never been politically viable in Kansas,” Jones said. “That’s a discussion that we will have to have, that the people of Kansas will be allowed to have if we pass Value Them Both.”
“We don’t know what life will look like after Aug. 2, we don’t know what this court decision will look like. We know so little at this point that it’s not even a discussion anyone should be having.”
Jones wouldn’t comment on whether a change in federal law would open that door.
The Star’s Daniel Desroschers contributed to this report.
This story was originally published May 3, 2022 at 5:04 PM.
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