Ballotpedia releases readability analysis of 2024 ballot measures

By

Ballotpedia staff

Welcome to the Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2024, Brew. 

By: Ethan Rice

Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:

  1. Ballotpedia releases readability analysis of 2024 ballot measures
  2. 50 states in 25 days—Kentucky and North Dakota
  3. Who can request a recount?

Ballotpedia releases readability analysis of 2024 ballot measures

Ballotpedia recently released its eighth annual analysis of the readability of statewide ballot measures. The report found that the language for the 159 measures on statewide ballots this year is written at an average reading level of 16, equivalent to a bachelor’s degree. This is a decrease from the average reading level of 19 in 2023 and 2022. 

Using Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL) and Flesch Reading Ease (FRE), the report measures how accessible ballot measure titles and summaries are based on objective factors, such as the number of syllables, words, and sentences in the text. These scores focus solely on language structure, not the complexity of the ideas themselves. Below are some highlights from our annual report, which is available here.

Sixty-nine (69) of the ballot measures included ballot summaries, and those also have an average score of 16.

The following table shows the average ballot title grade, word counts, summary grade, and the number of measures for each year. The year with the lowest ballot title grade was 2019, with 15, and the years with the highest were 2017 and 2020, with 20.

New Hampshire has the lowest average grade level score, with a score of seven. The highest average is in Alabama, with a score of 28. The average number of words in a ballot title is 68, ranging from seven words in Florida to 940 in Ohio.

Measures cover various topics, and patterns or trends emerge across the states. This year’s trends include abortion, ranked-choice voting, and citizenship, among other topics. Of the identified ballot measure trends, abortion-related ballot measures had the highest grade level scores for their titles, averaging 17, while wage-related policies had the lowest, averaging 11.

Because ballot measures often have multiple pages of legal text, each state assigns a person or group to write a shorter title for voters to read on the ballot. Lieutenant governors wrote ballot titles for four measures—two in Alaska and two in Utah— and these had the lowest scores at nine. Boards wrote the ballot language for nine measures, and these had the highest average scores at 20. Legislatures wrote the most ballot titles, 59, which had an average score of 18.

The following individual ballot measures had the highest or lowest grade level scores or word counts:

  • Maine Question 2 has the highest ballot title grade level at 42. This is a bond measure that would issue $25 million in general obligation bonds for the Maine Technology Institute. While no formal education level, including post-graduate, corresponds to a 42nd-grade level, this indicates that the language structure is advanced or difficult, according to the FKGL.
  • Florida Amendment 2 has the lowest ballot title grade level at -2. This is an amendment to provide a state constitutional right to hunt and fish. While no formal education level corresponds to -2 years, this number indicates that the language structure is basic, corresponding to two years below 1st grade. The exact ballot title is short and uses one-syllable words: “Right to Fish and Hunt.” This was the lowest score for a ballot measure title and the first below zero since Ballotpedia started tracking scores in 2017.
  • The longest ballot title is Ohio Issue 1, which has 940 words and is the longest title Ballotpedia has identified since we first started tracking such data in 2017. This initiative would create a non-politician redistricting commission. The next longest title, for North Dakota Initiated Measure 1, had 303 words. Before Ohio Issue 1, the longest ballot title was for Arkansas Issue 4 of 2018, which had 710 words.
  • Each of the shortest ballot titles has five words. There are three measures with five-word ballot titles: California Proposition 32, Florida Amendment 2, and Florida Amendment 3.

Earlier this year, Rhode Island passed legislation requiring that ballot questions be written in plain language and so that someone with an eighth-grade reading level can understand them. The bill received unanimous approval in the state legislature. Between 2017 and 2023, the average FKGL score for Rhode Island was 11, ranging from nine in 2018 to 12 in 2021 and 2022. In 2024, the FKGL score increased to 14. You can read more about readability laws here.

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50 states in 25 days—Kentucky and North Dakota

We’re in the home stretch – one week until election day.

We’re continuing to dig into what voters across the country can expect to see on their ballots with our 50 states in 25 days series. Yesterday, we looked at what’s on the ballot in New York and Utah. With three business days between now and the final Friday before the election, let’s continue investigating what’s on the ballot across the country. Today, we’re heading to Kentucky and North Dakota.

Kentucky

Let’s start with Kentucky’s elections. Here are some key dates and deadlines:

  • The deadline for registering online, in person, or by mail was Oct. 7. Excused in-person absentee voting is from Oct. 23-25 and Oct. 28-30. In-person, no excuse absentee voting begins Oct. 31 and ends Nov. 2. 
  • All polls open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Everyone who is in line when the polls close must be allowed to vote. Voters can find polling locations here. 

Kentucky voters will decide elections for congressional, state legislative, judicial, and municipal offices and will also vote on statewide and local ballot measures.

North Dakota

Next, let’s take a look at the Peace Garden State. 

  • North Dakota is the only state that does not require voter registration. State law permits counties to establish early voting. Seven of North Dakota’s 53 counties offer early voting. To learn more, visit this website.
  • Voting hours at polling locations vary by county. According to statute, all polls must open between 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. and close between 7:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. Everyone who is in line when the polls close must be allowed to vote. Voters can find polling locations and hours here. 

Here’s what is on the ballot:

  • Three presidential candidates qualified for the ballot in North Dakota: Kamala Harris (D), Donald Trump (R), and Chase Oliver (L).
  • Voters will elect one U.S. Senator and one U.S. House member. Seven candidates are running for North Dakota’s one at-large U.S. House district this year, including two Democrats and five Republicans. Incumbent Kelly Armstrong (R) did not run for re-election.
  • Seven state executive offices are up for election in North Dakota: governor, lieutenant governor, auditor, treasurer, superintendent of public instruction, public service commission, and insurance commissioner.
  • There are 48 seats up for election in the state House and 24 in the state Senate. North Dakota has a Republican trifecta and a Republican triplex. This means the Republican Party controls the offices of governor, secretary of state, attorney general, and both chambers of the state legislature.
  • One city within our coverage scope, Bismarck, is holding elections for municipal offices. 
  • Voters will decide on five statewide ballot measures: three constitutional amendments and two initiatives.
  • Two local measures are on the ballot in Burleigh County.

Want to learn more about the elections you’ll be voting in this year? Click here to use our Sample Ballot Lookup tool!

The information above is just a small snippet of the detailed information on Ballotpedia for each state. You can check out our deep dive into Kentucky’s 2024 elections here and North Dakota’s 2024 elections here.

Also, make sure to check our hub page, linked below, for future installments of the series.

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Who can request a recount?

Ballotpedia’s 2024 Election Help Desk provides reliable, nonpartisan answers to more than 50 election-related questions on topics ranging from voter registration to casting a ballot to the certification of final results. Today, we’re answering the question, Who can request a recount?

Forty-eight states have recount provisions. Automatic recounts are possible in 27 states, and requested recounts are possible in 43 states.

Automatic recounts occur if election results meet certain criteria laid out in state law. Requirements for an automatic recount might differ based on the type or level of office. The most common cause for an automatic recount is when election results fall within a close vote margin. States might also require an automatic recount if election officials discover a discrepancy or error in the vote totals.

Requested recounts require an interested party to ask for a recount. Requirements for a requested recount, where they exist, might differ based on the type or level of office. In most states with requested recount procedures, an interested party is either a candidate requesting a recount of a race in which they participated or a voter requesting a recount of a ballot measure election. Courts may be able to order a recount, but often only after another interested party requests a recount from the court.

The requester of a recount pays for the recount in 23 states, the state pays in six states, and in 12 states, it depends on the circumstances of the election or the recount. In 27 states, a refund is available for a requested recount. In 12 states, a refund depends on the circumstances of the recount, and in four states, no refund is available. Requested recounts are not possible in the remaining seven states. In 28 states, a partial recount can be requested.

Want more answers to election-related questions? From Can I register to vote online? to What happens if there is a tie in the Electoral College?, you can explore a number of other topics at the Help Desk.

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Editor’s note: This post previously stated that 48 states had recall provisions. It has been updated to say 48 states have recount provisions.