Voters in Colorado have seen more abortion-related ballot measures than those in any other state. There have been nine on the ballot since the first in 1984, and this year could increase that number to 10. The state with the next highest number is Oregon with six.
On April 18, the campaign Coloradans for Protecting Reproductive Freedom submitted 230,000 signatures for a ballot initiative to provide a state constitutional right to abortion. At least 124,238 of the submitted signatures need to be verified for the initiative to appear on the ballot on Nov. 5, 2024.
The initiative would not just be the tenth related to abortion in Colorado, it would repeal the first one ever proposed and passed in the state: Colorado Amendment 3, passed in 1984. Amendment 3 prohibited the use of public funds, such as Medicaid, for abortions. It passed with 50.39% of the vote. In 1988, another initiative attempted to repeal Amendment 3 but failed, with 60.24% voting ‘No’.
