Several states have abortion rights on the ballot again this midterm season—or candidates with strong stances on the issue. 

Among them are six state attorneys general who are seeking reelection, and who recently voiced their support for an embattled South Dakota abortion law that has been accused of violating free speech.

On October 19, Attorneys General Brenna Bird of Iowa, Tim Griffin of Arkansas, Mike Hilgers of Nebraska, Kris Kobach of Kansas, James Uthmeier of Florida, and Drew Wrigley of North Dakota joined 12 other attorneys general in filing an amicus curiae brief, a document in which someone with relevant expertise or an interest in a given lawsuit’s outcome makes a legal argument. 

The brief supports a law passed earlier this year that prohibits “the dispensing, distribution, sale, or advertisement of certain articles or things for purposes of an unlawful abortion” in South Dakota and sets criminal and civil penalties.

South Dakota has had a total abortion ban in effect since 2022, with an exception only when “necessary to preserve the life of the pregnant female.”

The plaintiffs in Mayday Health v. Rhoden, which was filed in May, allege that the law is unconstitutional and violates the First Amendment. A preliminary injunction was issued, and later upheld, preventing the state from enforcing the law while the matter plays out in court.

The lawsuit follows a previous legal dispute between South Dakota and nonprofit Mayday Health, in which the latter was accused of violating state laws by placing signage at gas stations that said “PREGNANT?

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