Challenges to citizen-led ballot initiatives in Missouri, other states:
Members of the Michigan Board of State Canvassers, from left, Richard Houskamp, Anthony Daunt and Mary Ellen Gurewitz listen to attorneys Olivia Flower and Steve Liedel during a hearing, Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2022, in Lansing, Mich. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File)
Hundreds of thousands of people have signed petitions this year in support of ballot initiatives expanding voting access, protect abortion, and legalize marjuana in Arizona, Arkansas and Michigan. In spite of this, these may be blocked by Republican officials due to lack of signatures, poorly worded ballots, or procedural shortcomings. In addition to this, Republican lawmakers in Arkansas and Arizona have amended the ballot process in their states to make approving citizen initiatives more difficult in the future. This is part of a several year trend as Democratic-aligned groups have increasingly used petitions to force public votes on issues that Republican-led legislatures have opposed. While some Democrats assert that this is subverting the will of the people, the Republicans responsible contend that they are protecting the integrity of lawmaking against well-funded interest groups. While about half the states have citizen initiatives, they still are required to be verified by executive and judicial officials to confirm they are clear and properly formatted. This past week in Michigan, two Republican members of the bipartisan Board of State Canvassers blocked initiatives to enshrine abortion in the state constitution and expand opportunities for voting. Both had significantly more than the required 425,000 signatures needed, but GOP board members shot down the voting measure for unclear wording and the abortion measure was flawed because of spacing problems that scrunched some words together. Both decisions have been appealed to the Democrat majority Michigan Supreme Court.