Missouri Republicans Just Overturned Abortion Rights and Paid Sick Leave

You ask an average Republican, they’ll say that they support states “making decisions again”. Little do they know that is what the slave owners who liked slavery also argued back when they were trying to outlaw it.

If you care about basic human rights, your blood will be boiling at today’s news.

Let’s take a dive at how the state of Missouri, even thought they passed both of these initiatives on the ballot in November of 2024, just lost what they voted for by a majority.

Abortion rights, and paid sick leave.

Kansas City Star

Amendment 3 and Proposition A was passed by voters, fair and square. Missouri had lost abortion rights post Roe V Wade, but activists took reproductive rights into their own hands. Proposition A guaranteed paid sick leave for over 700,000 workers.

Proposition A earned 58% of the vote, but since they were passed conservative lawmakers worked overtime to undermine the measures. Their excuse? Economic concerns and ideological opposition.

But how they got away with repealing the measures was… interesting.

Republican senators invoked “previous question,” which is a rare rule in the Missouri Senate, which cuts off debate and forces immediate votes. They called this for both of the measures.

First one was a measure proposal with a new constitutional amendment to replace Amendment 3, reinstating anti-abortion law but adding exceptions for rape, incest and medical emergencies.

Since these laws have a lot of gray area, the exceptions usually do not work as doctors and hospitals are too scared to take on that kind of responsibility and potentially lose their license/establishments.

The second bill repealed sick leave protections and ends the state inflation-based minimum wage indexing. Both passed pretty quickly, even though Democrats tried to hold a multi hour filibuster.

Proposition A repeal is going to take effect on August 28. It will strip away benefits from hundreds of thousands of workers while the proposed abortion restrictions are going to end up back on the ballot in 2026.

This is beyond sick and twisted.

The people came together and by a majority vote to have these rights. They won it fair and square. Instead of understanding democracy and upholding it, Republicans double backed and forced their own laws onto people. What is the point of having the democratic process of voting if Republicans are just going to take it away from you with the snap of a finger?

Americans deserve better. Trust me, if Republicans did this I would say the same thing. This is wrong. Point blank period.

What happened in Missouri is not just a policy disagreement—it’s a betrayal of democratic principles.

When voters show up, make their voices heard, and pass measures through a fair election, that should be the end of the story. But instead, we’re watching a dangerous precedent unfold: elected officials overriding the will of the people to serve their own agendas.

This isn’t just about abortion rights or paid sick leave—it’s about whether democracy itself still matters. If lawmakers can destroy majority votes with procedural tricks, then the integrity of our entire system is at risk.

We should all be paying attention—because if it can happen in Missouri, it can happen anywhere.