Each week, The Weekly Brew brings you a collection of the most viewed stories from The Daily Brew, condensed. Here are the top stories from the week of August 31 - September 4.
Oklahoma officials disagree over who can call a vote on a constitutional convention question
On Aug. 25, Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) issued an executive proclamation scheduling a measure calling for a state constitutional convention for a special election on April 6, 2027. The Oklahoma Constitution requires the question to be submitted to voters at least once every 20 years, but it was last submitted in 1970.
Stitt's executive proclamation led to a dispute with the Oklahoma Attorney General over who has the authority and responsibility to put the question on the ballot when the Oklahoma Legislature does not act.
Oklahoma is one of 14 states that require voters to consider a constitutional convention question at regular intervals. However, Oklahoma is the only one of those states that does not explicitly assign responsibility to a specific official or governmental body in its constitution or through state law.
Colorado mail-in ballot voter ID initiative becomes seventh voter ID measure certified for 2026 — the most in a single year
Colorado will be the seventh state to decide on a voter ID measure this year. The seven state measures are the most on this topic in any year. The previous record was three such measures in 2022.
Colorado’s Initiative 362 would add a new section to Article VII of the Colorado Constitution, requiring voters casting mail-in ballots to provide both their signature and an identification number, such as:
- the last four digits of their Social Security number,
- a Colorado REAL ID number,
- a Colorado REAL ID driver's license number, or
- the last four digits of another Colorado identification number meeting federal REAL ID requirements.
Initiative 362 would also require election officials to compare the information voters provide to the statewide voter registration database.
Currently, Colorado requires voters to sign their mail ballot envelope, but does not require additional identification.
2026 ballot measure count surpasses 153-measure even-year average, reaching 157 with Nebraska and Colorado certifications
Two citizen initiatives in Nebraska and three in Colorado were recently certified, bringing the nationwide total for statewide ballot measures this year to 157. That's more than the historical average of 153 in even-numbered years from 2014 through 2024.
Measures could still qualify in several states this year, meaning the final total may increase.
Driving this year’s increase are Louisiana and Massachusetts, both of which have more measures on the 2026 ballot than their annual averages between 2014 and 2024. Louisiana voters will decide on 15 measures, compared to an average of eight. Massachusetts voters will decide on nine measures, compared to an average of four.
Voters in seven states are deciding on 13 property tax measures this year
This year, voters in seven states will decide or have already decided on 13 statewide ballot measures regarding property taxes.
On May 16, Louisiana voters defeated Amendment 4, which would have allowed parishes to exempt business inventory from property taxes, 66.1% to 33.9%. The remaining 12 property tax measures will appear on the Nov. 3 ballot in Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Wyoming.
Independence, Missouri city councilmember becomes first official recalled over a data center project this year
On Sept. 1, voters in Independence, Missouri, recalled First District Councilman John Perkins, making him the first official to be removed from office in a data center-related recall this year.
Independence resident McKenna Cobb, who led the recall effort, cited Perkins' vote to approve a 90% tax abatement for technology company Nebius, in order to build a 2.1-million-square-foot data center in the Little Blue Valley district of Independence.
Following the recall vote, Perkins said he wouldn’t challenge the result and said, “This [the Nebius data center] is going to be an economic benefit to the city that will have long lasting, economic benefits."
Through Sept. 2, Ballotpedia identified 42 recall efforts targeting 79 officials related to data center projects so far in 2026. Of those, efforts against 41 officials are still underway, efforts against 33 officials did not go to a vote, and one official resigned. Recall elections against three officials in Michigan, Oklahoma, and Texas are scheduled on Nov. 3.