US voters back abortion rights and reject Trump's gerrymandering in state ballot measures

Abortion-rights advocates notched victories in several states Tuesday, and voters delivered a double dose of disapproval to US President Donald Trump’s redistricting efforts as they decided 145 ballot questions in more than three dozen states. The ballot measures provided a political undercard for a high-profile midterm election in which Democrats took control of Congress and gained power in state legislatures and gubernatorial offices. Read moreWhy the Democrats routed the Republicans in the US midterm elections Some measures put Trump’s priorities to a public test by gauging support for his attempts to redraw congressional districts – a practice also known as gerrymandering – limit transgender athletes in sports and strengthen voter identification requirements. Voters defeated a proposed amendment to Missouri’s constitution that would have reimposed restrictions on most abortions. The vote Tuesday essentially reaffirmed voters' decision from two years ago, when they became the first in the nation to undo an existing abortion ban by approving an abortion-rights amendment. The Republican-led Legislature then referred a new, less restrictive version of an abortion ban to this year’s...