All three Ballot Proposals pass in Michigan

There were three state proposals on the ballot for Michigan Tuesday that voters faced. Two of the three were hotly contested issues, but still they all passed.

Proposal 22-1

The ballot measure would amend the state constitution to reduce the maximum length a lawmaker can serve in the Legislature from 14 years to 12 years, but would allow them to serve the full tenure in one chamber. Currently, lawmakers can serve up to six years in the Michigan House and eight years in the Senate.

The constitutional amendment would also require state lawmakers, the governor, the secretary of state and the state attorney general to disclose certain financial information, including: description of assets, sources of all forms of income, description of liabilities, positions held outside their elected office, arrangements regarding future employment, continuing benefits from former employers other than the state, and payments and gifts received from lobbyists.

Category: Constitutional amendment proposal

History: On May 10, the Michigan Legislature voted to place the issue on the November ballot with watered-down language compared to the original version backed by a bipartisan group. It effectively allowed the group to skip the signature gathering process. 

The Proposal Passed.

Proposal 22-2

The coalition of voting-rights groups seeks to amend the state constitution to:

• Allow nine days of early voting
• Publicly subsidize absentee ballots and a tracking system for the ballot location 
• Continue to allow registered voters without a state ID to sign an affidavit attesting to their identity 
• Allow public sources and charities to fund elections, subject to disclosure rules
• Allow voters to register for absentee ballots for all future elections
• Require ballot drop boxes for every 15,000 voters in a municipality
• Establish that post-election audits can only be conducted by state and local officials
• Require canvass boards to only certify election results based on the official vote counts

Category: constitutional amendment proposal

History: On Sept. 9, the Michigan Supreme Court ordered the initiative onto the November ballot. On Aug. 31, the Board of State Canvassers deadlocked 2-2 and failed to place the proposal on the November ballot. The vote came after challengers argued the initiative would repeal sections of the existing constitution but did not disclose it in its language. Sponsors cried foul, arguing the opposition failed to raise the question before and noted the board had approved the format previously.

The group submitted 669,972 signatures. The Bureau of Elections recommended the board place the measure on the ballot based on enough valid signatures.

If approved by a majority of voters in November, the measure would take effect 45 days after Election Day.

The Proposal Passed.

Proposal 22-3

The measure would amend the state Constitution to make reproductive freedom a right, repealing a decades-old law that makes abortion a felony. The law was set to take effect after the U.S. Supreme Court last month struck down Roe v. Wade — a 1973 landmark case that offered federal protection for abortion. But a Michigan judge has issued an injunction blocking the state law from being enforced. 

Category: constitutional amendment proposal

History: On Sept. 9, the Michigan Supreme Court ordered the initiative onto the November ballot. On Aug. 31, the Board of State Canvassers deadlocked 2-2 and failed to place the proposal on the November ballot. The vote came after challengers argued the lack of spacing in the initiative language, which caused words to run together. Sponsors disputed the claim, arguing the law is silent on spacing issues and the board has no statutory authority to reject the measure on that ground.

The group has submitted 753,759 signatures, the most in state history. The Bureau of Elections recommended the board place the measure on the ballot based on enough valid signatures.

If approved by a majority of voters in November, the measure would take effect 45 days after Election Day.

The Proposal Passed.