Jay Ashcroft wins latest legal fight over push to restore abortion rights in Missouri

JEFFERSON CITY — A state appeals court Tuesday sided with Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft in a dispute over a proposed ballot initiative seeking to restore abortion rights in Missouri.

Columbia attorney Jeffrey Basinger filed a lawsuit in August 2022 alleging that Ashcroft was illegally refusing to process an initiative petition on abortion that he wanted to be on the November 2024 ballot.

Ashcroft said he would not begin the process of certifying the proposed constitutional amendment until after the November 2022 election.

In a unanimous decision, the Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District, agreed with Ashcroft, saying ballot initiatives can only be processed during the election cycle in which they are going to be on the ballot.

“Practically, this means that … sample initiative petitions for the November 2024 general election can be processed only between the day following the November 2022 general election until six months prior to the November 2024 general election,” wrote Judge W. Douglas Thomson.

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“The Secretary of State had no ministerial duty to process Basinger’s sample initiative petition for the November 2024 general election prior to the day following the November 2022 general election,” the judge added.

In deciding the case, the appeals court agreed with Cole County Circuit Judge Jon Beetem, who ruled that Basinger’s arguments were “unpersuasive” and his attempt to get started on the expensive and complicated process of gathering enough voter signatures to get the question on the ballot was premature.

Basinger told the Post-Dispatch Tuesday that he plans to appeal the ruling.

“I disagree with the decision. I think it’s up to the Missouri Supreme Court to determine the constitution,” Basinger said.

A spokesman for Ashcroft said, “It is unfortunate taxpayer dollars would be required to defend against such frivolous lawsuits.”

“Secretary Ashcroft followed the law in refusing to process Mr. Basinger’s inappropriate request. We are pleased the courts would uphold the rule of law and affirm the secretary’s decision,” the office said.

The decision comes as Basinger and other groups have turned to Missouri’s ballot initiative process in an effort to make abortion legal again in the state after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision in June 2022.

Republicans hold solid majorities in both the House and Senate, leaving abortion rights supporters to use the citizen voting process to address the legality of the procedure.

In a separate case to be heard in Cole County on Sept. 11, Ashcroft is defending ballot language he wrote that abortion rights supporters say is “misleading.”

Ashcroft, an abortion opponent and 2024 candidate for governor, wrote that the proposed ballot initiatives will allow for “dangerous, unregulated abortions” without requiring a medical license.

Like Basinger, groups that want to begin the signature collection process say the Secretary of State is politicizing the initiative petition process in an attempt to run out the clock on their efforts.

A brief in the case filed by the League of Women Voters of Missouri alleges Ashcroft went too far in his summary of the ballot language.

“To safeguard this sacred right and the power of the people, the voters must necessarily be informed — and not misled — by the language they read on the ballot,” the voting rights group said.

Missouri’s Legislature reflects the federal structure in many ways. Video by Beth O’Malley

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