NationalFILE - Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach, left, and Erin Hawley, Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel, speak to each other outside the Supreme Court after the Court heard oral arguments, Tuesday, March 26, 2024, in Washington.
Abortion opponents argued ahead of the August 2022 vote that failing to change the state constitution would doom long-standing restrictions enacted under past GOP governors. Kansas saw a flurry of new restrictions under former Republican Gov. Sam Brownback from 2011 through 2018. According to state health department statistics, about 600 D&E procedures were done in Kansas in 2022, accounting for 5% of the state’s total abortions. About 88% of the state’s abortions occurred in the first trimester. The state has yet to release statistics for 2023.