Voters defeated a measure to add abortion rights to the Florida state constitution on Tuesday but sided with abortion-rights advocates on ballot measures in Maryland and New York.

Results were still pending in seven other states with abortion measures on the ballot.

The Florida result was a political win for Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis that will keep in place the state’s ban on most abortions after the first six weeks of pregnancy.

It’s the first ballot measure victory for abortion opponents in any state since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, a decision that ended the nationwide right to abortion and opened the door to bans in most GOP-controlled states, protections in Democrat-dominated ones and new political and legal battles across the country.

In Maryland, the abortion rights amendment is a legal change that won’t make an immediate difference to abortion access in a state that already allows it.

A New York equal rights law that abortion rights group say will bolster abortion rights also passed. It doesn’t contain the word “abortion” but rather bans discrimination on the basis of “pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive healthcare and autonomy.”

Florida required 60%

The Florida measure failed to clear the required 60% voter approval threshold to pass constitutional amendments in Florida. Most states require a simple majority.

Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the national anti-abortion group SBA Pro-Life America, said in a statement that the result is “a momentous victory for life in Florida and for our entire country,” praising DeSantis for leading the charge against the measure.

DeSantis, a Republican with a national profile, has steered state GOP funds to the cause. His administration has weighed in, too, with a campaign against the measure, investigators questioning people who signed petitions to add it to the ballot and threats to TV stations that aired one commercial supporting it.

The defeat makes permanent a shift in the Southern abortion landscape that began when the state’s six-week ban took effect in May. That removed Florida as a destination for abortion for many women from nearby states with deeper bans and also led to far more women from the state traveling to obtain abortion. The nearest states with looser restrictions are North Carolina and Virginia — hundreds of miles away.

“The reality is because of Florida’s constitution a minority of Florida voters have decided Amendment 4 will not be adopted,” said Lauren Brenzel, campaign director for the Yes on 4 Campaign. “The reality is a majority of Floridians just voted to end Florida’s abortion ban.”

Ending a win streak

Until Tuesday, abortion rights advocates had prevailed on all seven measures that have appeared on statewide ballots since the fall of Roe.

The abortion rights campaigns have a big fundraising advantage this year. Their opponents’ efforts are focused on portraying the amendments as too extreme rather than abortion as immoral.

Currently, 13 states are enforcing bans at all stages of pregnancy, with some exceptions. Four more bar abortion in most cases after about six weeks of pregnancy — before women often realize they’re pregnant. Despite the bans, the number of monthly abortions in the U.S. has risen slightly, because of the growing use of abortion pills and organized efforts to help women travel for abortion. Still, advocates say the bans have reduced access, especially for lower-income and minority residents of the states with bans.

The issue is resonating with voters. About one-fourth said abortion policy was the single most important factor for their vote, according to AP VoteCast, a sweeping survey of more than 110,000 voters nationwide. Close to half said it was an important factor, but not the most important. Just over 1 in 10 said it was a minor factor.

The outcomes of ballot initiatives that sought to overturn strict abortion bans in Florida and Missouri were very important to a majority of voters in the states. More than half of Florida voters identified the result of the amendment as very important, while roughly 6 in 10 of Missouri’s voters said the same, the survey found.

In other states

While the ballot questions have similar aims, each one occupies its own political circumstances.

Nebraska has competing ballot measures. One would allow abortion further into pregnancy. The other would enshrine in the constitution the state’s current law, which bars most abortions after 12 weeks — but would allow for further restrictions.

In South Dakota, the measure would allow some regulations related to the health of the woman after 12 weeks. Because of that wrinkle, most national abortion-rights groups are not supporting it.

In some states, notably Missouri, passing amendments may not expand access immediately. Courts would be asked to invalidate the bans; and there could be legal battles over that. Clinics would need to staff up and get licenses. And some restrictions could remain in effect.

Arizona, a battleground in the presidential election, bans abortion after the first 15 weeks of pregnancy.

The ballot measure there gained momentum after a state Supreme Court ruling in April found that the state could enforce a strict abortion ban adopted in 1864. Some GOP lawmakers joined with Democrats to repeal the law before it could be enforced.

Like Maryland, the ballot measure in Democratic-controlled Colorado would largely put existing policies into the state constitution. Colorado’s version could also remove financial barriers to abortion. It would take 55% of the vote to pass there.

Measures maintaining access also are on the ballot in Montana, where a U.S. Senate race could help determine control of the chamber, and Nevada, a battleground in the presidential election.

In Nevada, where control of the state government is divided, the ballot measure would have to be passed this year and again in 2026 to take effect.