Voters in Amarillo rejected a proposal this week to make it illegal to use local streets and highways to obtain an out-of-state abortion, a rare win for abortion rights in Texas.
Proposition A, which sought to make the West Texas town a so-called “sanctuary city for the unborn,” failed Tuesday with only 40% of voters in favor. The vote is an exceedingly rare rebuke for abortion opponents in a deep-red part of the state.
The abortion travel bans are part of a conservative movement to make highways the latest front in the abortion fight, but the legal standing of such ordinances are unclear because the U.S. Constitution protects the right to interstate travel. A handful of Texas counties have adopted similar travel bans, including Lubbock and Mitchell, but the measures were approved by county commissioners, not implemented by a direct vote.
Since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade in 2022, Texans have increasingly crossed state lines to get abortions. New Mexico, Kansas, Colorado and Illinois are some of the most accessible options for those leaving the Lone Star State. Texas bans the procedure in all cases except to protect the life of the mother, but some patients and physicians have argued that exemption is vague and confusing.
Proposition A would have allowed residents to sue another person for violating the ordinance for at least $10,000. Amarillo, with a population of 203,000, is the largest city in the Texas Panhandle, and its rejection of the measure stops the abortion travel ban from reaching interstates 27 and 40 within the city.
Mark Lee Dickson, an East Texas anti-abortion activist behind the measure, bemoaned the results on X.
“The City of Amarillo has become the first city in the history of Texas to reject a Sanctuary City for the Unborn ordinance on a citywide ballot. 40.54% (27,544) voted FOR. 59.46% (40,392) voted AGAINST,” Dickson wrote. “Amarillo is the new Alamo for the pro-life movement in Texas.”
Amarillo council member Tom Scherlen, who opposed the measure, has previously likened the ordinance to Nazi Germany in World War II and said he could not support neighbors turning in neighbors.
“Last time we saw something like this was during World War II when Hitler was asking neighbors to turn neighbors in during the war, especially towards the Jews,” Scherlen said in an interview last year with CNN. “And I just don’t propose liking to see a neighbor turn in a neighbor, particularly in America. We live in a free society. And according to the Constitution, I believe that you are entitled the right to travel.”
Abortion rights supporters applauded the measure’s rejection, even as some said they knew it could resurface in coming years.
“With nearly a 20-point margin, Amarillo voters sent a resounding message: we reject government overreach and stand firmly for bodily autonomy and personal freedom,” Avow Texas, an abortion rights group, wrote on Instagram. “This is more than just a local win — It’s a victory for everyone fighting against extremist anti-abortion measures.”
Amarillo offered Texas voters a rare opportunity to weigh in on abortion via a direct vote. Abortion was on the ballot in 10 states this election, with seven states supporting abortion rights. Most of these votes were the result of citizen-led petitions that gathered signatures and forced states to send the issue directly to voters. Texas does not allow any form of voter-led ballot measures.
