Alabama 2020 ballot measures

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As of February 1, 2020, five statewide ballot measures were certified for the 2020 ballot in the state of Alabama.

HIGHLIGHTS

The legislature referred five constitutional amendments to the ballot during the 2019 legislative session. Four of the measures will appear on the general election ballot. The measure concerning the state board of education will appear on the primary election ballot.

On average since 1997, the legislature referred eight measures to even-year ballots, 81% of which were approved.

On the ballot

March 3, 2020:

Type	Title	Subject	Description
LRCA	Amendment 1, Appointed Education Board Amendment	Education	Renames the State Board of Education the Alabama Commission on Elementary and Secondary Education; requires members to be appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Senate rather than being elected

November 3, 2020:

Type	Title	Subject	Description
LRCA	Judicial System Restructuring Amendment	State judiciary	Makes changes to judicial law and court systems and procedures
LRCA	Authorize Legislature to Recompile the State Constitution Amendment	Constitutional language	Authorizes the state legislature during the 2022 regular session to recompile the Alabama Constitution and provide for its ratification
LRCA	Citizen Requirement for Voting Amendment	Suffrage	States that only a citizen can vote in Alabama
LRCA	Judicial Vacancies Amendment	State judiciary	Provide that a judge, other than a probate judge, appointed to fill a vacancy would serve an initial term until the first Monday after the second Tuesday in January following the next general election after the judge has completed two years in office

Potential measures

The Alabama Legislature may refer measures to the ballot during its 2020 legislative session.

Getting measures on the ballot

Alabama state law does not currently allow for initiatives or referendums; therefore, all measures must be referred to the ballot by the Alabama Legislature. The state's 2019 legislative session lasted from March 5 through June 18, 2019, during which time constitutional amendments were placed on the ballot by the legislature. The legislature may also refer amendments during its 2020 legislative session.

According to Article 18 of the Alabama Constitution, both houses of the Alabama State Legislature are required to pass a proposed constitutional amendment by a three-fifths or 60 percent vote in order to send it to the statewide election ballot. If the amendment is approved by a simple majority of the voters, it becomes part of the state constitution.

Not on the ballot

Type	Bill number	Title	Subject	Description	Status
LRCA	SB 220	Establish Statewide Lottery Amendment	Gambling	Authorizes a statewide lottery in Alabama; requires legislature to pass laws implementing the program
LRCA	HB 282	Bail Amendment	Civil and criminal trials	Provides that anyone accused of a crime may be allowed bail unless they are charged with a Class A felony
LRCA	HB 178	Reprieves and Commutations Amendment	Civil and criminal trials	Requires the governor, before granting reprieves or commutations, to notify the attorney general and the victim's family; allows a victim's family to challenge a commutation or reprieve

Historical facts

See also: List of Alabama ballot measures and History of Initiative & Referendum in Alabama

• A total of 95 measures appeared on statewide ballots in Alabama from 1998 to 2018.
• From 1998 to 2018, the number of measures on statewide ballots during even-numbered years ranged from four to 15.
• Between 1998 and 2018, an average of eight measures appeared on the ballot in Alabama during even-numbered election years.
• Between 1998 and 2018, about 81 percent (72 of 89) of the total number of measures that appeared on statewide ballots during even-numbered years were approved, and about 19 percent (17 of 89) were defeated.

State profile

This excerpt is reprinted here with the permission of the 2016 edition of the Almanac of American Politics and is up to date as of the publication date of that edition. All text is reproduced verbatim, though links have been added by Ballotpedia staff. To read the full chapter on Alabama, click here.

The past hangs over Alabama like its tall yellow pines: Refrains from decades-old civil rights struggles recur in the debate on gay marriage, and the state's manufacturing base has once again been built with the help of outsiders. The state continues to struggle with poverty and low rates of education, and while Alabama's dominant political party has changed, populists and "big mules" remain. Only now, every branch of state government has been tainted by corruption or scandal.

The French founded Mobile near the Gulf of Mexico in 1702, but the interior of Alabama remained Indian country until 1814, when Andrew Jackson defeated the Red Stick band of the Creek Indians at Horseshoe Bend, ending the two-year Creek War. Jackson imposed a treaty on the Red Sticks and on his own Indian allies, expropriating almost all of what five years later became the state of Alabama. With the Indians removed, the first white settlers poured in. Farmers from Tennessee swept into the red ...(read more)

Demographic data for Alabama
	Alabama	U.S.
Total population:	4,853,875	316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):	50,645	3,531,905
Gender
Female:	51.5%	50.8%
Race and ethnicity**
White:	68.8%	73.6%
Black/African American:	26.4%	12.6%
Asian:	1.2%	5.1%
Native American:	0.5%	0.8%
Pacific Islander:	0.1%	0.2%
Two or more:	1.7%	3%
Hispanic/Latino:	4%	17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:	84.3%	86.7%
College graduation rate:	23.5%	29.8%
Income
Median household income:	$43,623	$53,889
Persons below poverty level:	23.3%	11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Alabama. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Presidential voting pattern

See also: Presidential voting trends in Alabama

Alabama voted Republican in all five presidential elections between 2000 and 2016.

More Alabama coverage on Ballotpedia

• Elections in Alabama
• United States congressional delegations from Alabama
• Public policy in Alabama
• Influencers in Alabama
• Alabama fact checks
• More...

See also

• 2020 ballot measures
• List of Alabama ballot measures
• History of Initiative & Referendum in Alabama
• Campaign finance requirements for Alabama ballot measures