Author: Nicole Fisher
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Pennsylvania's two-session vote requirement for constitutional amendments and party control of the state House
Democrats won control of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives on November 8 for the first time in 12 years. The Associated Press called 102 seats for Democrats and 101 seats for Republicans. The change in party control may affect a package of constitutional amendments passed earlier this year by Republicans in the Pennsylvania General Assembly.…
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Campaigns for two Maine initiatives submit signatures for 2023 ballot
In Maine, two campaigns submitted signatures for initiatives this week to make the ballot for November 7, 2023. The signatures were submitted to the secretary of state. If the minimum valid signature requirement is met, the initiatives with enough signatures will go to the Legislature, which has the option to approve them. If the Legislature…
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Kentucky voters will decide an abortion-related constitutional amendment on November 8
On November 8, Kentucky voters will decide on two statewide constitutional amendments on the ballot. Amendment 2, if approved, would amend the Kentucky State Constitution to say that nothing in the constitution creates a right to abortion or requires government funding for abortion. These types of amendments are designed to address previous and future state…
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Ten statewide measures are on the ballot in Arizona
On November 8, Arizona voters will decide on 10 statewide ballot measures. This is the highest number of measures on the Arizona ballot since 2010, when there were 11 measures on the ballot. In 2020, the previous even-year election, there were two measures on the ballot, both of which were approved. This year's measures are…
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Missouri voters to decide on marijuana this November
Five measures will be on the Missouri ballot on November 8. One ballot measure, Amendment 3, would legalize the sale, possession, and use of marijuana in Missouri. Amendment 3 would also provide for individuals with certain marijuana-related offenses to petition for release from prison or parole and probation and have their records expunged. It also…
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Measures to repeal constitutional language on slavery and indentured servitude as criminal punishments are on the ballot in five states this November
On November 8, 2022, voters in five states—Alabama, Louisiana, Oregon, Tennessee, and Vermont—will decide on amending their state constitutions to repeal language regarding the use of slavery or indentured servitude as punishment for a crime, or, in the case of Vermont, for the payments of debts, damages, fines, costs. The ballot questions are below: Alabama…
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Referendum on Arizona Empowerment Scholarship Accounts expansion bill will not make the 2024 ballot
On Sept. 30, Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs (D) announced that a referendum on Empowerment Scholarship Accounts (ESA) expansion legislation will not make the ballot. A week earlier, the campaign for the referendum, the Save Our Schools PAC, submitted signatures to place the measure on the ballot. The campaign said it submitted 141,714 signatures.…
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Signatures submitted for a referendum on Arizona Empowerment Scholarship Accounts expansion bill
Arizona voters may vote on a referendum on a bill to expand empowerment scholarship accounts in 2024. On September 23, the Save Our Schools PAC submitted 141,714 signatures to put a referendum on the ballot. In Arizona, an empowerment scholarship account, or ESA, allows parents or guardians of students with disabilities to sign a contract…
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Five measures that would change the initiative process are on the ballot in 2022
In November, there are a total of five measures on the ballot related to the initiative process. A ballot initiative is a way that citizens can propose, amend, or repeal a state law or constitutional provision by collecting signatures from registered voters. Successful signature drives result in an initiative being placed on the ballot for…
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Abortion rights initiative certified for the Michigan ballot
On Sept. 8, 2022, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled in a 5-2 decision that an initiative to create a state constitutional right to reproductive freedom, defined to include abortion, contraceptives, and other pregnancy-related matters,must be added to the November ballot. The initiative was officially certified by the Board of State Canvassers on Sept. 9 and…