Author: Victoria Antram
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New Mexico State Legislature sends two more constitutional amendments to the November ballot
The New Mexico State Legislature voted to send two constitutional amendments to voters in November on Feb. 14. These two constitutional amendments join two others that were certified for the ballot during last year’s legislative session. The new constitutional amendments are Senate Joint Resolution 1 (SJR 1) and Senate Joint Resolution 16 (SJR 16). SJR…
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California legislature considers constitutional amendment to eliminate dual question recalls for state officers
The California State Senate passed a constitutional amendment on Feb. 1 that would eliminate the successor election when a state officer is recalled, thereby leaving the office vacant until it is filled according to state law. For example, during the 2021 recall of Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) voters were asked the following two questions: The…
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Oregon Supreme Court upholds secretary of state’s interpretation of Measure 113 excluding 10 senators from seeking re-election after their walkout last May
The Oregon Supreme Court ruled that nine Republican state senators and one independent who participated in a legislative walkout in May 2023 could not seek re-election under Measure 113—a 2022 ballot initiative that makes legislators ineligible to be re-elected to a subsequent term if they accrue 10 or more unexcused absences. On May 3, 2023,…
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Georgia, South Carolina, and Texas ballots have featured political party platform advisory questions in recent years
Ballotpedia has tracked nonbinding political party platform advisory questions in three states—Georgia, South Carolina, and Texas. Democratic and Republican parties have placed these questions on statewide ballots to gauge voters’ support for various policy proposals. All three states have open primaries, meaning that voters do not have to formally affiliate with a political party in…
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Texas Republican Party places 13 nonbinding advisory questions on the March primary ballot
The Texas Republican Party has placed 13 nonbinding advisory questions on the March 5 primary ballot. The Texas Democratic Party does not plan on placing any questions on primary ballots this year. The last time they did was in 2020. An advisory question is a type of ballot measure in which citizens vote on a…
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At least 21 states have adopted laws addressing the readability of ballot measure language
Ballotpedia identified 21 states that have enacted laws addressing how legislators, secretaries of state, or other election officials write the question or description of a ballot measure. New York and North Dakota were the most recent states to do so in 2023. The New York State Legislature passed a law requiring that state ballot measure…
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California campaign withdraws veto referendum on fast-food employment law from 2024 ballot under new process
On Dec. 29, the Save Our Local Restaurants PAC withdrew a veto referendum from the Nov. 5, 2024, ballot that would have repealed California Assembly Bill 257 (AB 257). AB 257 was designed to establish a 10-member fast food council authorized to adopt a minimum wage for fast food restaurant employees not to exceed $22…
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2023 highest odd-year constitutional amendment election turnout in Texas in almost two decades
Texas registered voter turnout at the Nov. 7 constitutional amendment election was 14.4%—the highest since 2005 when it reached 18%. 2023 was six percentage points higher than 2021, which saw a turnout of 8.8%. This amounted to over a million more voters turning out for the election. Texas voters decided on 14 constitutional amendments on…
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Two 2024 ballot initiative campaigns report reaching the 25% signature threshold in California
The California secretary of state reported on Dec. 13 that two California ballot initiatives campaigns had collected at least 25% of the required number of signatures needed to qualify for the ballot in 2024. Protect Patients Now, sponsored by the California Apartment Association, is gathering signatures for an initiated state statute to require healthcare providers…
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Oregon ballot initiative filed to require gas pump attendants after state legislature repealed ban on self-serve gas in August
Two versions of an initiative to require gas pump attendants in Oregon were filed in October and November. United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 555 filed the initiated state statutes. To qualify for the 2024 ballot, proponents need to collect 117,173 valid signatures by July 5, 2024. Michael Selvaggio, political director for UFCW Local…