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In a in Cole County Circuit Court, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Stinson law firm said Secretary of State Denny Hoskins certified a misleading summary statement and ballot language for a statewide ballot initiative seeking to overturn voter-approved protections for reproductive rights.

The ACLU said the ballot language fails to inform voters that, if approved, it will eliminate a woman’s right to reproductive freedom.

The lawsuit also said the language approved by Hoskins would abolish constitutional protections for prenatal care, childbirth, postpartum care and birth control, while also ending protections for doctors who perform the procedure.

“Less than six months after we voted to end Missouri’s abortion ban and protect reproductive freedom, politicians chose to ignore the will of the people so they can reinstate their ban on abortion,” said Tori Schafer, director of policy and campaigns at the ACLU of Missouri.

A spokeswoman for Hoskins did not respond to a request for comment.

The ballot initiative was the Republican response to last year’s election when nearly 52% of Missouri voters supported Amendment 3, which protects the right to abortion up to fetal viability.

GOP lawmakers argued Amendment 3 went too far and said Missourians were deceived through a misleading campaign funded by out-of-state interests.

Democrats in the Senate held off passage of the initiative until May 15, when Republicans led by Senate President Cindy O’Laughlin, R-Shelbina, deployed a rarely used rule to cut off debate, forcing a vote to place the question on next year’s general election ballot.

Democrats had sought to soften the legislation by removing provisions banning health care treatments for transgender youth from the proposed ballot question.

But the GOP majority muscled the question through on a 21-11 vote.

If endorsed by voters, the constitutional amendment would allow abortion access in rape and incest cases up to 12 weeks of pregnancy, as well as in medical emergencies and in cases of fetal anomalies.

The proposal also would place a ban on hormone therapy, puberty blockers and surgeries for gender transition for minors in the state constitution.

The current Republican plan makes exceptions for rape and incest cases, something Missouri’s previous abortion ban didn’t allow. That ban went into effect on June 24, 2022, the same day the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.

The lawsuit notes that the language approved by Hoskins, who is opposed to abortion, says that a “yes” vote will “guarantee access to care for ectopic pregnancies, miscarriages, and medical emergencies.” However, the lawsuit says care for ectopic pregnancies and miscarriages is already guaranteed and safeguarded from government interference by the state constitution.

In addition to questioning the summary statement, the lawsuit says the new ballot initiative violates the state’s single subject clause for ballot measures by including the transgender provisions and a proposal to change state law on where certain lawsuits can be filed.

The lawsuit asks the court to declare the summary statement and fair ballot language unfair and insufficient and to certify a new, compliant summary statement for voters, or to declare the initiative in violation of the state Constitution and deny it from being placed on a ballot.

Although voters made abortion legal in the state last year, full-scale resumption of the procedure has been blocked through lawsuits.

In May, the Missouri Supreme Court ordered a Jackson County judge to vacate her previous rulings that have allowed abortions to resume in the state.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, a Republican, argued Missouri women would suffer irreparable harm if its request was not granted and that the judge in the case used the wrong standard to enjoin almost all of Missouri’s abortion laws.