Constitution

Missouri and Ohio Republicans have said that raising the constitutional threshold from a simple majority is aimed at scuttling initiatives expanding abortion rights.

Kansas City’s tenant union formed a political organizing group last year. The group has been campaigning hard for six candidates as it tries to shift the balance of power in Kansas City with today's election. Plus: Missouri voters could decide whether the state constitution should be harder to change, but it may face a tough reception at the polls.

Republicans wanted to send a ballot item to Missouri voters that would raise the threshold to amend the state constitution from a simple majority to 57%. GOP lawmakers have admitted the effort is motivated in part to stop the expansion of abortion rights, but not everyone is confident that voters will go along.

In a seemingly unprecedented move, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey demanded that the state auditor include “inaccurate information" in the fiscal summary for a proposed amendment enshrining abortion rights in the state constitution.

Camden County Presiding Commissioner Ike Skelton has called the ATF unconstitutional. The statement comes after his brother was indicted for illegally selling guns to undercover ATF agents.

Backed by the group Missourians for Constitutional Freedom, the measures would amend the Missouri Constitution to declare that the “government shall not infringe upon a person’s fundamental right to reproductive freedom.” That would include childbirth, postpartum care, birth control, abortion services, and miscarriage care.

Opponents to the measure say it's a rash response to recent ballot initiatives where voters approved policies Republicans have blocked in the legislature — including Medicaid coverage for low-income adults and marijuana legalization.

Over the years, Missouri voters have passed several issues through the initiative petition process, including medical and recreational marijuana, Medicaid expansion and a minimum wage hike. A GOP-proposed bill would raise the percentage of votes needed to pass a proposed change to the Missouri Constitution from a simple majority to 60%.

In a party-line vote, Missouri House members approved proposals to make it more difficult to pass constitutional amendments.

Since the end of the 2022 election cycle, there’s been increased talk from proponents and opponents of abortion rights about putting a constitutional amendment about the issue on the 2024 ballot. But a proposal from Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft would raise the bar for passing those amendments to 60%.

At 224 pages and just over 69,000 words, the current Missouri constitution is the fourth in the state's history. November's ballot will ask if voters want a new one.

Thanks to a Missouri law, voters must be asked every 20 years whether they would like to call a convention to amend the state constitution. But since the question started being asked in 1962, Missourians have never voted "yes."