Author: Victoria Antram
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The deadline to register to vote in the May constitutional amendment election in Texas is April 7
Texans are heading to the polls on May 7 to decide two constitutional amendments. The deadline to register to vote in the election is April 7. The Texas State Legislature referred two measures to statewide ballots during the second and third special legislative sessions of 2021. The ballot measures were the first referred to an…
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Voters in Augusta, Maine approve $4.5 million in bonds for fire and emergency services capital improvements
Voters in Augusta, Maine approved a bond measure on March 22 that authorizes the city to issue $4,455,000 in bonds to fund fire and emergency services capital improvements and city infrastructure. The vote margin was 71.2% to 28.8%. A simple majority vote was required to approve the measure. The city charter authorizes the Augusta City…
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Sixteen Thirty Fund, ACLU, and Planned Parenthood contribute to the campaign behind Vermont Proposal 5, the Right to Personal Reproductive Autonomy Amendment
In its March 15 campaign finance filings, Vermont for Reproductive Liberty, the campaign behind Proposal 5, reported receiving $183,207 in contributions. Proposal 5 would amend the Vermont Constitution to add language protecting the right to personal reproductive autonomy and prohibiting government infringement unless justified by a compelling state interest. Currently, the right to abortion is…
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New Mexico governor signs bond package for senior citizen facilities, libraries, and public education, sending three measures to voters in November
On Mar. 9, New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) signed House Bill 153 (HB 153), a bond package passed by the legislature in February. The bond package authorizes the state to issue a total of $259,722,000 in general obligation bonds. The bond package will appear as three separate ballot questions in November. The ballot…
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Voters in Augusta, Maine will decide on one bond question on March 22
Voters in Augusta, Maine will decide whether to authorize the city to issue $4,455,000 in bonds to fund capital improvements to fire services, city streets, and city facilities on March 22. The city charter authorizes the Augusta City Council to borrow up to $750,000 without voter approval. Anything greater must be submitted to voters for…
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Committee behind an initiative to increase the minimum wage for tipped workers in D.C. submits signatures for the June ballot
On Feb. 22, the DC Committee to Build a Better Restaurant Industry submitted 34,000 signatures to the D.C. Board of Elections in an effort to place Initiative 82 on the June ballot. Initiative 82 would incrementally increase the tipped minimum wage from $5.05 in 2021 to match the minimum wage of non-tipped employees in 2027.…
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Vermont voters to decide whether to add a right to personal reproductive autonomy to the state constitution in November
On Feb. 8, the Vermont House of Representatives took the final vote to send Proposal 5 to the November ballot. Proposal 5 would add language to the Vermont Constitution stating that “an individual’s right to personal reproductive autonomy is central to the liberty and dignity to determine one’s own life course.” The amendment would prohibit…
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Vermont voters to decide constitutional amendment for the first time in 12 years that would prohibit slavery and indentured servitude
The Vermont House of Representatives took the final vote on Feb. 4 to send Proposal 2 to voters in November. The constitutional amendment would repeal language stating that persons could be held as servants, slaves, or apprentices with the person’s consent or “for the payments of debts, damages, fines, costs, or the like” and would…
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Texas Republican Party places nonbinding advisory questions on March primary ballot
The Texas Republican Party has placed 10 nonbinding advisory questions on the March 1 primary ballot. The Texas Democratic Party did not place any questions on primary ballots. An advisory question is a type of ballot measure that has no legally binding effect but serves to let voters express their opinions on a policy. The…
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Maine initiative signature deadline passes with no signatures submitted; campaigns target 2023 ballot
The Maine 2022 signature deadline for citizen-initiated measures was Jan. 30. None of the six active campaigns submitted signatures; however, the campaigns have an 18 month circulation period allowing the campaigns to target ballots in 2023. The six initiatives concern requiring a law to establish a publicly funded health coverage program; creating a consumer-owned electric…