Tuesday was a successful night for Missouri’s initiative petition process — and a major defeat for Republican lawmakers who’ve tried to curtail direct democracy in recent elections. Both Proposition A and Amendment 6 made the ballot after advocacy groups collected enough signatures to bring the issues to voters.
By rejecting Proposition A, Missourians permanently struck down the 2025 congressional maps that would have given Republicans an edge in the U.S. House races.
The Missouri advocacy group People Not Politicians was responsible for putting Proposition A on the ballot by way of citizen petition. Deputy director Emily Gerber said the final result was no surprise.
“Missourians from across the political spectrum and across all corners of the state came together to reject this political power,” Gerber told KCUR’s Up To Date.
Loading...
Following the U.S. Supreme Court decision in September that enforced the 2022 maps in November’s election, the pro-redistricting campaign all but dropped out of the race. Meanwhile, the “no” campaign continued to raise millions of dollars to the very end.
That lack of effort from the Missouri GOP could be because they’re already looking to redraw the maps again ahead of the 2028 election. Gerber said she is uncertain how protected the 2022 maps are now, but she believes that Missourians will show up to reject redistricting again if needed.
“The people spoke clearly on Tuesday, and so I hope that the legislature listens to their constituents as they go into this next legislative session,” Gerber said.
With the passage of Amendment 6, any counter-petition made in response to future redistricting efforts could carry a lot more weight.
That measure protects propositions and amendments passed through the citizen initiative and referendum process, and cements those as fundamental rights in the Missouri constitution. It now takes at least 80% of both the Missouri House and Senate to propose any change to a passed citizen initiative. Then, voters would get a chance to approve the change itself.
Loading...
Jack Cardetti, one of the leading spokespeople for the “Yes on 6” campaign, emphasized the measure’s landslide victory. He pointed out how the issue passed 60-40%, with a margin of about 415,000 votes.
“Missourians of all walks of life, of all political persuasions, got out there, and they said citizen-led initiatives are not a political issue,” Cardetti told KCUR’s Up To Date. “It's a right that we've had for 118 years, and we want it protected.”
But the amendment is still liable to be challenged. A key provision applies the same legal protections to any citizen initiative passed going back to 2010 — which includes measures that legalized recreational marijuana, legalized sports betting and expanded Medicaid eligibility.
The retroactive application could become a target for lawmakers hoping to bring the issue to court. However, Cardetti said he believes the amendment stands on “solid legal ground.”
“The very first thing it says in the Missouri Constitution is the will of the people should be the supreme power, and that's ultimately what Amendment 6 does,” Cardetti said.
- Emily Gerber, People Not Politicians deputy director
- Jack Cardetti, Yes on Amendment 6 campaign spokesperson
