State ballot measures in the 2026 midterm elections addressed issues with implications for workplaces and employee benefits, including abortion access, diversity programs, gender-affirming care and union organizing. Measures had mixed outcomes across the states, leaving employers to navigate differing legal requirements.

Voters in Nevada and Virginia approved constitutional amendments protecting abortion access, with limits and exceptions tied to fetal viability, pregnancy stage and medical necessity. Missouri voters rejected Amendment 3, which would have reversed an earlier constitutional protection for reproductive freedom. Idaho voters also rejected a proposal that would have guaranteed abortion rights up to fetal viability.

The results were mixed on measures targeting affirmative action and diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. Arizona voters rejected a proposal that would have barred the state from granting preferential treatment in employment based on race or ethnicity, among other provisions, and restricted certain DEI commitments and training. Wisconsin voters approved a measure prohibiting state preferential treatment in employment and other contexts based on race, sex, color, ethnicity or national origin.

Arizona voters approved Proposition 318, which requires educational institutions and athletic associations to separate bathrooms and other private spaces by sex assigned at birth. Colorado’s Proposition 135, concerning gender-affirming care for minors, remained too close to call at press time. It would prohibit certain surgeries and the use of health insurance or government funds to pay for them. A similar Missouri measure failed.

Vermont voters approved Proposal 4, a constitutional amendment guaranteeing equal treatment under the law regardless of a range of characteristics, including race, sex, disability, sexual orientation and gender identity. They also approved Proposal 3, establishing a right to join or organize a labor organization for collective bargaining. In Massachusetts, voters approved collective bargaining rights for employees of the state’s Committee for Public Counsel Services.

The outcomes have potential consequences for employers’ policies and benefits, particularly where states take different approaches to reproductive healthcare, coverage of gender-affirming care, workplace discrimination and organizing rights.

Sources: HR Dive.