Author: Ryan Byrne
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Pennsylvania Supreme Court rules against 2019 Marsy’s Law Crime Victims Rights Amendment
In 2019, 74% of voters at the election on Nov. 5, 2019, voted to approve the Pennsylvania Marsy’s Law Crime Victims Rights Amendment. Results were never certified because the Commonwealth Court enjoined then-Acting Secretary of State Kathy Boockvar from certifying election results pending litigation. On Dec. 21, 2021, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, in a 6-1 ruling,…
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Ballotpedia’s year-end analysis of local measures in the largest U.S. cities and state capitals
On Dec. 20, Ballotpedia published its year-end analysis of the 202 local ballot measures across 27 states in the 100 largest U.S. cities and state capitals. Ballotpedia’s year-end report breaks down the measures by type, by state, by topic, by outcome, and by election date. Here are some highlights from the report: There were 202…
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Maine Question 1’s support and opposition campaigns raised $99.6 million, totaling $241.75 per vote
On Nov. 2, voters approved Maine Question 1, which prohibited the construction of electric transmission lines defined as high-impact in the Upper Kennebec Region, including the New England Clean Energy Connect (NECEC). The ballot initiative also required a two-thirds vote of each state legislative chamber to approve high-impact electric transmission line projects. The NECEC is a planned 145-mile long, high-voltage…
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Pennsylvania House passes five constitutional amendments; bill heads back to state Senate
The Pennsylvania House of Representatives approved a bill that contains five constitutional amendments, which voters would decide as distinct ballot measures, on Dec. 15. In April, the state Senate approved the bill as a single constitutional amendment. Since the House changed the bill to include more constitutional amendments, the bill returns to the Senate for…
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Referendum on Arizona income tax legislation certified for 2022 ballot
On Nov. 19, the office of Secretary of State Katie Hobbs (D) announced that enough signatures were valid for a veto referendum to overturn an income tax bill that Gov. Doug Ducey (R) signed on June 30, 2021. Since the veto referendum was certified, the targeted legislation will not go into effect until voters decide…
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Detroit voters approve reparations and entheogenic plants measures, reject measure on initiative appropriations
Voters in Detroit, Michigan, decided three ballot measures on Nov. 2, including two citizen-initiated initiatives and an advisory question. Proposal E (decriminalization of entheogenic plants such as psilocybin) and Proposal R (reparations committee creation) were approved. Proposal S was defeated. Proposal E was designed to decriminalize the possession and therapeutic use of entheogenic plants, including psilocybin mushrooms, peyote,…
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Maine transmission line company files lawsuit over constitutionality of Question 1
Voters in Maine approved Question 1 on November 2. The citizen-initiated ballot measure received 59% of the vote with 97% of precincts reporting. Question 1 was designed to stop the New England Clean Energy Connect (NECEC), a 145-mile long, high-voltage transmission line project that would transmit around 1,200 megawatts from hydroelectric plants in Quebec to electric utilities…
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New Jersey voters reject expanded sports betting amendment, approve change to raffle law
Voters in New Jersey decided two constitutional amendments on Nov. 2, approving one and rejecting the other. Proposal 1 was rejected by 56.8% of voters. It would have allowed wagering on all college sports competitions. As of 2021, the state constitution permitted sports betting except on games held in New Jersey and on games featuring…
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Maine voters approve ballot measures, including transmission corridor initiative and right to food amendment
Voters in Maine approved each of the three measures on the ballot for Nov. 2, 2021. As of 8:30am EST on Wednesday, 89% of precincts had reported results. Question 1 received 59% of the vote. It was designed to prohibit the construction of electric transmission lines defined as high-impact in the Upper Kennebec Region, including the New England…
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New Yorkers reject redistricting and voting ballot measures, approve environmental rights amendment
On November 2, voters in New York passed two constitutional amendments and rejected three. The approved measures were Proposal 2, an environmental rights amendment, and Proposal 5, a judicial measure. Voters rejected Proposal 1 concerning redistricting processes and Proposal 3 and Proposal 4, which would have allowed for same-day voter registration and no-excuse absentee voting.…