UPDATED: Montana passes initiative enshrining abortion in state constitution

Abortion protections will be enshrined in Montana’s Constitution and largely cannot be infringed upon by state lawmakers, Montanans overwhelmingly decided, passing Constitutional Initiative 128 by a 14-point margin of 57% to 43% as of Wednesday morning.

The Associated Press called the race in favor of proponents shortly after 4 a.m. on Wednesday morning. As of 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, “yes” votes outweighed “no” votes by about 77,000.

“Today Montanans voted overwhelmingly to defend reproductive freedom and enshrine in the state constitution the right to make and carry out their own personal decisions about pregnancy and abortion,” Montanans Securing Reproductive Rights President Christopher Coburn said in a statement. “It is a consequential day for Montana and the people of our great state. A steadfast coalition of organizations, stakeholders, volunteers, and voters  definitively protected abortion rights in our state constitution. Ultimately, voters from across the political spectrum came together to protect access to abortion care, reproductive freedom, and personal privacy.”

The initiative’s passage means Montana’s government will not be able to step in and try to prevent people from having abortions before a fetus is viable, widely regarded as about 24 weeks gestation, according to Montana medical professionals. The measure goes into effect July 1, 2025.

The amendment would also prohibit the government from placing any burdens or restrictions on health care professionals who perform an abortion at any time when it is necessary to protect the life or health of the mother. And it would keep the government from penalizing any providers or patients who help with or obtain an abortion.

State Rep. Kelly Kortum, D-Bozeman, said on social media that proponents of the measure had declared victory late Tuesday night.

Abortion in Montana has remained legal because of the Montana Supreme Court’s 1999 decision in Armstrong vs. State of Montana. In that case, the court found the state constitution’s right to privacy included the right to an abortion.

Under the Gianforte administration and Republican-held Legislature in recent years, lawmakers have passed, and Gianforte has signed, several bills seeking to restrict abortion access in Montana. Nearly all of them have been overturned in court because of protections under the Armstrong decision.

Montana voters in 2022 rejected the legislatively referred “born alive” ballot issue, with 53% of Montanans opposed and 47% in favor. The measure would have established large fines and prison terms for violating the law had it passed and would have stated that infants born alive at any stage of development were legal persons.

“This is a huge win for Montana, but now we must continue the hard work of educating citizens about the importance of reproductive healthcare and the ongoing threats to our reproductive freedom at all levels,” said Martha Fuller, the president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Montana.