Category: Ballot measures
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Before the 19th Amendment, the women’s suffrage movement campaigned for 54 ballot measures in 30 states
The 19th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution was ratified on August 18, 1920. The 19th Amendment prohibited the government from denying or abridging the right to vote on account of sex, meaning that women were guaranteed the right to vote in the U.S. Constitution. Before the 19th Amendment, the women’s suffrage movement also campaigned for…
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New York environmental bond removed from the November ballot, with governor citing an unstable financial situation
On July 30, 2020, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) announced that a $3.00 billion bond measure related to environmental projects was removed from the general election ballot. In April 2020, as part of the state budget bill, the New York State Legislature passed a provision for the bond measure. Gov. Cuomo proposed the bond…
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Oklahoma voters to decide initiative to prevent sentencing enhancements due to previous non-violent felonies in November
State Question 805 qualified for the ballot on July 29, after the state supreme court had found that the campaign submitted 248,521 valid signatures and after the 10-day challenge period ended on July 28 without any signature validity challenges filed. Yes on 805, sponsors of the amendment, turned in 260,000 signatures to the Secretary of State’s office…
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Signatures submitted for Colorado initiative allowing voters in Central City, Black Hawk, and Cripple Creek to vote to expand gaming types and increase max bets
Local Choice Colorado, sponsors of Initiative #257, reported submitting over 200,000 signatures to the Secretary of State’s office on July 28. To qualify for the November ballot, 124,632 valid signatures are required by August 3. The secretary of state verifies signatures through a random sample of 5% of submitted signatures. If the sampling projects between…
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Missouri voters will decide on Medicaid expansion August 4
Missouri voters will vote on Amendment 2, the Medicaid Expansion Initiative, on August 4. Amendment 2 would expand Medicaid eligibility in Missouri to adults that are between the ages of 19 and 65 whose incomes are at or below 138% of the federal poverty level. The amendment would also prohibit any additional restrictions or requirements…
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Oil and gas ballot measures won’t appear on 2020 ballot in Colorado; signatures for other initiatives due on August 3
On Friday, July 24, 2020, Colorado Governor Jared Polis (D) announced that he would oppose ballot measures related to oil and gas in 2020 and 2022 on both sides to allow Senate Bill 181 of 2019 to take full effect. SB 181 was designed to make changes to the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission,…
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Montana county clerks verify that New Approach Montana has enough signatures to qualify marijuana measures for the ballot
On July 17, New Approach Montana reported that county clerks had accepted 52,315 signatures from the 80,000 raw signatures submitted for its constitutional amendment initiative (CI-118) and 35,458 signatures from the 52,000 signatures submitted for its initiated state statute (I-190). A total of 50,936 signatures and 25,468 signatures, respectively, were required to qualify for the…
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Rhode Island voters will decide whether to remove “Providence Plantations” from the official state name in November
On November 3, Rhode Island voters will decide a constitutional amendment that would change the state’s official name from “State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations” to “Rhode Island.” On July 16, the Rhode Island House of Representatives passed the amendment. It was approved by the state Senate on June 18. The amendment would also…
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Illinois Gov. Pritzker has contributed $56.5 million to campaign behind graduate income tax ballot measure
Through June 30, 2020, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) contributed $56.5 million to the campaign Vote Yes For Fairness. The campaign is backing a ballot measure to repeal the state’s constitutional requirement that the state personal income tax be a flat rate. It would, instead, allow the state to enact legislation for a graduated income…
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Fate of four initiatives in Arkansas uncertain due to state law requiring signature gatherers to certify that they passed background checks
A veto referendum concerning eye surgeries, which was certified on January 31 to appear on the November ballot, is awaiting a final determination from the Arkansas Supreme Court about whether it will remain on the ballot. Arkansans for Healthy Eyes (opponents of the veto referendum effort) filed a lawsuit on February 28, 2020, alleging…