The Missouri Senate began debate this week about whether to make it tougher to approve a vote of the people through the initiative petition process. The upper chamber spent several hours Monday and Tuesday debating the proposal.
Initiative petitions are a way to propose laws and constitutional amendments without the approval of the GOP-controlled Missouri Legislature. Under current law, it takes a simple majority to change the state constitution – the same majority is what led to recreational marijuana being legalized and the expansion of Medicaid healthcare for some low-income adults. The proposal debate would require a simple majority plus a Congressional majority of the U.S. House district seats in the state.
Sen. Doug Beck, D-Affton, is not a fan because it included so-called “ballot candy,” a tactic used to grab a voter’s attention.
“The first thing on your ballot summary is you say you allow only U.S. citizens to vote on constitutional amendments, which we know is already the case,” said Beck. “Then you say you forbid foreign countries from filing constitutional amendments, which we already know is the case. Then you say ban constitutional amendments allowing lobbyist gifts to lawmakers, which we already know is the case. Then you come down to the very end, the crux of what you want to do here is take away the person’s, one person, one vote.”
Sen. Tracy McCreery, D-Olivette, called out Sen. Mary Elizabeth Coleman, R-Arnold, for using the attention-grabbing tactic.
“You know this, to me, reminds me of the kind of trickery that politicians try to do all the time and I think the voters are going to see this for what it is,” McCreery said. “We’ve seen that happen in other states. The voters don’t take kindly to being tricked and to have their, you know, one person one vote rights taken away.”
The Senate has not voted on the bill and debate on the matter will likely continue this session. The issue is a top priority for many Republicans in the legislature.
Click here for more information.
Copyright 2024, Missourinet.