Posted on Jul 28, 2023
Missouri officials are watching vote in Ohio raising constitutional amendment threshold
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As Missouri Republicans mull over whether to put a measure on next year’s ballot making it harder to amend the state constitution, at least one other state with similar political characteristics will soon vote on the idea.
Voters in Ohio will decide Aug. 8 whether to raise the threshold to amend the constitution to 60%. Like Missouri, Ohio is a former presidential swing state that’s become much more Republican in recent years. And backers of the idea say there needs to be a higher standard to enact consequential policy items than a simple majority.
There’s another thing the two states have in common: Proponents of raising the constitutional threshold have made no secret that it’s aimed at scuttling ballot items either expanding or enshrining abortion rights.
Elected officials and political scientists in both states say the result of the Ohio vote could influence whether Republicans in places like Missouri try to put a similar question before voters next year.
“Hopefully they’ll see it go down in flames in Ohio, and the renewed effort will be pretty weak here,” said state Rep. Ashley Aune, D-Platte County.
Voters in Ohio will decide Aug. 8 whether to raise the threshold to amend the constitution to 60%. Like Missouri, Ohio is a former presidential swing state that’s become much more Republican in recent years. And backers of the idea say there needs to be a higher standard to enact consequential policy items than a simple majority.
There’s another thing the two states have in common: Proponents of raising the constitutional threshold have made no secret that it’s aimed at scuttling ballot items either expanding or enshrining abortion rights.
Elected officials and political scientists in both states say the result of the Ohio vote could influence whether Republicans in places like Missouri try to put a similar question before voters next year.
“Hopefully they’ll see it go down in flames in Ohio, and the renewed effort will be pretty weak here,” said state Rep. Ashley Aune, D-Platte County.
Missouri officials are watching vote in Ohio raising constitutional amendment threshold
Posted from news.stlpublicradio.org
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..."Could Ohio prompt Missouri to think twice?
Even though turnout on Issue 1 is expected to be low, Devine said that proponents of the measure are in a quandary: Trying to galvanize supporters to vote for raising the constitutional threshold could also entice proponents of abortions rights to flock to the polls to kill the measure.
“If they can get out the message that this is basically about abortion, and more than that, as they're portraying it, that this is an attempt to game the system to pull it over on Ohio voters, there's some possibility there to motivate people to get out and vote,” Devine said.
If Ohio voters defeat the Issue, it would mark yet another instance of a heavily Republican state rejecting a bid to make the constitution more difficult to amend. Voters in Arkansas soundly defeated a similar measure in 2022.
But state Rep. Michael Burton, D-Lakeshire, said he does not think the results of the Ohio vote will stop Republicans from trying again next year to make it more difficult to amend Missouri’s constitution.
“I think they’re going to keep going for it,” Burton said."
..."Could Ohio prompt Missouri to think twice?
Even though turnout on Issue 1 is expected to be low, Devine said that proponents of the measure are in a quandary: Trying to galvanize supporters to vote for raising the constitutional threshold could also entice proponents of abortions rights to flock to the polls to kill the measure.
“If they can get out the message that this is basically about abortion, and more than that, as they're portraying it, that this is an attempt to game the system to pull it over on Ohio voters, there's some possibility there to motivate people to get out and vote,” Devine said.
If Ohio voters defeat the Issue, it would mark yet another instance of a heavily Republican state rejecting a bid to make the constitution more difficult to amend. Voters in Arkansas soundly defeated a similar measure in 2022.
But state Rep. Michael Burton, D-Lakeshire, said he does not think the results of the Ohio vote will stop Republicans from trying again next year to make it more difficult to amend Missouri’s constitution.
“I think they’re going to keep going for it,” Burton said."
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