constitutional amendments
March 23, 2022 -
Arkansas and Florida are the only Southern states that still allow citizens to place questions on the ballot, but Republican lawmakers there want to erect new barriers to this form of direct democracy.
September 17, 2021 -
Though a lawsuit seeking to restore the voting rights of North Carolinians on probation or parole suffered setbacks in recent court rulings, the broader movement to re-enfranchise people with felony convictions has made gains in Southern states in recent years.
September 13, 2021 -
The North Carolina NAACP is challenging the racially gerrymandered legislature's authority to put a voter ID question on the ballot, which voters passed in 2018. The state's highest court has postponed arguments while it decides whether two justices closely connected to the legislature must sit out the case.
September 16, 2020 -
In a lawsuit filed by the state NAACP over constitutional amendments passed by a legislature that federal courts found to be racially gerrymandered, the N.C. Court of Appeals ruled to uphold them, reversing a lower court's decision. The group is now taking the case to the state Supreme Court.
September 9, 2020 -
High courts in Arkansas and Florida have blocked ballot measures that would have required nonpartisan redistricting and banned assault weapons. The courts cited new laws that raise the bar for citizens to put constitutional amendments on the ballot.
December 18, 2019 -
Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis' appointments have transformed the Florida Supreme Court, which will soon review nine constitutional amendments — including a $15 minimum wage — that were proposed by citizens.
August 12, 2019 -
A group of activists is working to amend the Florida constitution to ban rifles and shotguns that hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition. But it's gathered only a fraction of the signatures required to get the ban on the ballot, and it's facing burdensome new rules for citizen amendments.
