Category: Ballot measures

Could Michigan be the second state to vote on ranked-choice voting? Bill Gelineau, a Libertarian, is planning a ballot initiative for a future election to enact ranked-choice voting. Gelineau ran for governor in 2018, placing third with 1.3 percent of votes behind Gretchen Whitmer (D) and Bill Schuette (R). The Lansing, Michigan, chapter of Represent.Us…

On Monday, North Dakota Senate Republicans passed a constitutional amendment that would require citizen-initiated constitutional amendments—after they’ve made it on the ballot and been approved by voters at a statewide election—to then be sent to the legislature for approval. If not approved by the legislature, the measure would be required to go back on the…

The deadline to register to vote for elections on March 5, 2019, in California is Tuesday, February 19. In California, residents must register to vote 15 days prior to an election. On March 5, 2019, voters will decide the following races: – The District 5 seat on the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of…

On February 11, 2019, Senate Bill 143 (SB 143) was introduced into the Nevada State Legislature to amend Question 1 (2016), which was designed to require firearm transfers between unlicensed persons to go through a licensed dealer. Under Question 1, the licensed dealer would contact the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICBCS) to…

Marijuana was a notable topic and trend for ballot measures in 2018.   In 2018, voters in two states—North Dakota and Michigan—decided citizen initiatives to legalize recreational marijuana. The measure was defeated in North Dakota and approved in Michigan.   In Oklahoma, State Question 788 legalizing medical marijuana was approved in June 2018. Utah and…

In his State of the State address, California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) said the state’s high-speed rail project between San Francisco and Los Angeles “would cost too much and take too long.” Newsom said he wanted a portion of the high-speed rail, from Merced and Bakersfield, to be prioritized. The governor’s spokesperson Nathan Click later…

Voters in the Seattle Public Schools district approved two property tax measures on February 12, 2019. Proposition 1 was designed to fund educational programs with a tax levy at the rates of $1.05 per $1,000 in assessed property value in 2020; $0.96 per $1,000 in 2021; and $0.87 per $1,000 in 2022. The district proposed…

Utah Proposition 3, the Medicaid Expansion Initiative, was on the ballot in Utah as an initiated state statute on November 6, 2018. It was approved by a vote of 53 percent to 47 percent. Proposition 3 expanded Medicaid coverage to include persons under the age of 65 and with incomes equal to or below 138 percent of…

The Arizona Court of Appeals ruled that a state law, passed as HB 2579 in 2016, violated the Voter Protection Act, Arizona’s restriction on legislative alteration. The Voter Protection Act requires voter approval of substantive changes made by the legislature to ballot initiatives. HB 2579 was designed to preempt local governments from requiring nonwage benefits…

On February 7, 2019, Initiative 1000 was certified to the Washington legislature after enough signatures were found to be valid. Proponents submitted 395,938 signatures and, using a random sample method, the secretary of state’s office found that 76 percent of the signatures were valid—more than the 259,622 required signatures.   Initiative I-1000 would allow affirmative…