Ballotpedia:Analysis of the 2019 ballot measures

2019 U.S. state ballot measures
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December 16, 2019
By The Ballot Measures Team

A total of 36 statewide ballot measures were on 2019 ballots in eight states. Of those, four were decided at pre-November elections, and 32 statewide measures were on ballots for the November election in seven states.

Of the total, 22 statewide measures were approved by voters, and 14 were defeated. As of December 2019, the outcome of one of those measures—the Pennsylvania Marsy's Law Amendment—was pending a final court ruling.

The average number of statewide measures on the ballot in odd-numbered years from 2009 through 2017 was between 30 and 31.

HIGHLIGHTS

There were two citizen-initiated measures on the ballot, one initiative and one veto referendum, both in Washington. The initiative was approved and the veto referendum was rejected, which was the result sought by the measure's sponsors in each case.

State legislatures referred 22 measures to the ballot. Voters approved 18 and rejected four.

There were more statewide measures in 2019 than in any odd-numbered year since 2007, largely due to the record number of advisory questions in Washington; the 24 binding statewide measures was about average since 2013 in odd-numbered years and well below the average over the last few decades.

Ballot initiative and veto referendum activity was below the odd-year average since 2013 both in terms of the numbers of measures filed and success rates.

Sponsors of the two citizen-initiated measures in Washington spent $560,000 and $837,178, respectively, on signature-gathering costs. This amounted to costs per required signature (CPRS) of $2.15 and $3.22, respectively. The average CPRS for citizen-initiated measures in odd-numbered years since 2013 was $6.48. The average CPRS for all citizen-initiated measures in Washington since 2013 was $2.98.

In 2019, ballot measure support and opposition campaigns raised about $28.04 million. Most of the contributions (94.1 percent) were for measures in three states—Colorado, Pennsylvania, and Washington.

The campaign with the highest cost per vote (CPV) in 2019 was the support campaign for Colorado Proposition CC, which lost after spending $6.41 for every vote in favor of the measure.

Statistical summary

Note: The Pennsylvania Marsy's Law Crime Victims Rights Amendment was approved by voters and is listed among approved measures below. However, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court enjoined Acting Secretary of State Kathy Boockvar from certifying election results, pending a court ruling on whether the amendment violates the state constitution's requirement that separate amendments receive separate votes.

The charts below include all statewide ballot measures certified for 2019 ballots including the four measures on the October 2019 ballot in Louisiana:

2019 election stats
Total	Approved (%)	Defeated (%)
36	22 (61.11%)	14 (38.89%)

Initiated measures

See also: Ballot initiative and Veto referendum

Total initiatives	Amendments	Statutes	Veto referendums	Approved	Rejected
2	0	1	1	1 (50%)	1 (50%)

Legislatively referred amendments and statutes

See also: Legislative referral

Total referrals	Amendments	Statutes	Approved	Rejected
21	19	2	17 (81%)	4 (19%)

Bond issues

See also: Bond issue

Ballotpedia distinguishes between bond issues that are put on the ballot by the legislature through a legal process specifically designed for such proposals and alterations to state statute or the state constitution that call for bonded indebtedness.

In some states, the legislature is able to or sometimes required to put certain proposed bond issues before voters. This section lists legislatively referred bond questions. It does not list other types of measures that happened to propose the issuance of bonds or other indebtedness. For example, two amendments in Texas were put on the ballot proposing the issuance of bonds and are counted instead as legislatively referred constitutional amendments. To see a full list of all statewide measures proposing the issuance of bonds, regardless of what type of measure was used, click here. In 2019, one bond issue, Maine Question 1, was referred by the Maine State Legislature. It was approved.

Bond issues	Approved	Rejected
1	1 (100%)	0 (0%)

Advisory questions

See also: Advisory question

Twelve tax advisory votes were on the ballot in Washington. These were nonbinding questions that advised the legislature to repeal or maintain bills passed in the 2019 legislative session that increased taxes. Voters voted in favor of advising the legislature to maintain three bills and repeal the other nine. The 12 advisory questions on the ballot in 2019 the largest number of advisory questions on tax increases in Washington required by the state's automatic process. There were between three and five in 2017, 2015, and 2013.

Questions	Maintained	Repealed
12	3 (25%)	9 (75%)

Measures through the years

The average number of statewide measures on the ballot in odd-numbered years from 2009 through 2017 was between 30 and 31. A Washington law requiring advisory, nonbinding votes on any revenue-increasing bills passed by the legislature triggered its first odd-year advisory question in 2013. The 12 advisory questions on the ballot in 2019 was the largest number of advisory questions on tax increases in Washington required by the state's automatic process. There were between three and five in 2017, 2015, and 2013.

Comparing only binding statewide measures to previous years,

• 24 were certified for 2019 ballots in eight states;
• 24 were certified for 2017 ballots in eight states;
• 24 were certified for 2015 ballots in nine states; and
• 26 were certified for 2013 ballots in six states;

Type of ballot measure	2019	2017	2015	2013	2011	2009
Legislatively referred constitutional amendments	19	16	16	17	21	20
Initiatives	1	4	5	3	10	6
Veto referendums	1	0	0	0	2	3
Legislatively referred state statutes	2	0	1	6	1	3
Legislatively referred bond questions	1	3	2	0	0	0
Automatic ballot referrals	0	1	0	0	0	0
Commission-referred ballot measures	0	0	0	0	0	0
Advisory questions	12	3	4	5	0	0
Total	36	27	28	31	34	32

Odd-year ballot measures since 1987

The following table and graph show how many measures were certified for the odd-year ballot in a given year and in how many states.

Year	States	Measures
2021	9	39
2019	8	36
2017	9	27
2015	9	28
2013	6	31
2011	9	34
2009	7	32
2007	10	45
2005	13	47
2003	15	68
2001	9	39
1999	16	72
1997	8	44
1995	11	61
1993	15	62
1991	9	48
1989	13	77
1987	13	78
Averages:	11	48

All ballot measures since 2000

The chart below breaks down measures since 2000, including even- and odd-numbered years.

Total measures since 2000
Year	Initiatives	Legislative referrals	Other measures	TOTAL
2019	2	22	12	36
2018	68	75	24	167
2017	4	19	4	27
2016	76	71	15	162
2015	5	17	6	28
2014	40	111	7	158
2013	3	24	5	31
2012	63	122	3	188
2011	12	22	0	34
2010	50	130	4	184
2009	8	24	0	32
2008	74	92	8	174
2007	4	39	1	44
2006	83	140	3	226
2005	19	26	0	45
2004	65	107	1	173
2003	7	60	1	68
2002	55	162	6	223
2001	4	35	0	39
2000	82	151	2	235
Even-year averages	66	116	7	189
Odd-year averages	7	29	2	38

Ballot initiative activity

See also: Ballot initiatives filed for the 2019 ballot

There are 26 states that provide for some form of citizen-initiated ballot measures. There are five states that allow citizen-initiated measures to appear on the ballot in odd-numbered years—Colorado, Maine, Mississippi, Ohio, and Washington. The remaining 21 states allow citizen-initiated measures to appear on the ballot in even-numbered years but not odd-numbered years, such as 2019.

In 2019, two citizen-initiated measures appear on the ballot. Both of the measures were in Washington.

There was a total of 107 citizen-initiated measures filed that could have appeared on ballots in 2019. Sponsors had to file petitions with their state election officials and collect signatures but failed for various reasons, including a lack of an organized campaign, a shortage of valid signatures, missed deadlines, and lawsuits. Of the 107 initiatives filed with state officials, 1.87 percent appeared on the ballot. The average number of citizen-initiated measures filed targeting odd-numbered years since 2013 was 134. The average success rate was 3.8% (five measures).

	2011	2013	2015	2017	2019	Averages
Proposed	137	133	151	142	107	134
Certified	12	3	5	4	2	5
Certified (%)	8.76%	2.26%	3.31%	2.82%	1.87%	3.80%

Signature collection costs

See also: Ballot measure signature costs, 2019

A total of $1,397,177.88 was spent on the signature petitions for the two citizen-initiated measures that were on the ballot in 2019. Both measures were on the ballot in Washington.

Sponsors of Washington Initiative 976 hired Citizen Solutions LLC to collect signatures for the petition to qualify this measure for the ballot. A total of $560,000.00 was spent to collect the 259,622 valid signatures required to put this measure before voters, resulting in a total cost per required signature (CPRS) of $2.15.

Sponsors of Washington Referendum 88 hired National Ballot Access to collect signatures for the petition to qualify this measure for the ballot. A total of $837,177.88 was spent to collect the 259,622 valid signatures required to put this measure before voters, resulting in a total cost per required signature (CPRS) of $3.22.

The average CPRS for all citizen-initiated measures in Washington since 2013 was $2.98.

Ballot Measure:	Topic:	Petition company	Cost	Signatures	CPRS
Washington Initiative 976	Taxes	Citizen Solutions LLC	$560,000.00	259,622	$2.15
Washington Referendum 88	Affirmative action	National Ballot Access	$837,177.88	259,622	$3.22
Averages:	N/A	N/A	$698,588.94	N/A	$2.69

The chart below shows the lowest non-zero CPRS, the average CPRS, and the largest CPRS for years from 2010 through 2019:

Year	Lowest (non-zero)	Average	Highest
2019	$2.15	$2.69	$3.22
2018	$0.07	$6.52	$25.86
2017	$0.02	$15.40	$43.97
2016	$0.41	$5.63	$56.00
2015	$4.26	$3.57	$8.13
2014	$0.76	$3.22	$10.86
2013	$1.24	$4.24	$9.82
2012	$0.24	$4.30	$10.86
2011	N/A	N/A	N/A
2010	$0.08	$2.62	$9.51

Campaign contributions

Most expensive measures

The following five measures featured the largest amount in combined support and opposition campaign contributions. Two were approved, and two were defeated. Although a majority of voters approved Pennsylvania Marsy's Law, the election results have not been certified. Washington I-976 and Colorado Proposition CC were the only measures where the side with the most contributions did not win.

Measure	Status	Support	Opposition
Pennsylvania Marsy's Law Crime Victims Rights Amendment	ot	$	$
Colorado Proposition CC, Retain Revenue for Transportation and Education TABOR Measure	d	$4,638,093.25	$1,921,849.90
Washington Initiative 976, Limits on Motor Vehicle Taxes and Fees Measure	a/ot	$695,348.94	$5,213,578.43
Washington Referendum 88, Vote on I-1000 Affirmative Action Measure	d	$1,885,431.50	$1,523,616.07
Colorado Proposition DD, Legalize Sports Betting with Tax Revenue for Water Projects Measure	a	$3,866,554.44	$0.00

Contributions by state

In 2019, ballot measure campaigns raised about $28.04 million. Most of the contributions (94.1 percent) were received in three states—Colorado, Pennsylvania, and Washington. The following tables detail the amounts raised in each state:

Out of the five states that reported campaign contributions, all five had support campaigns, and two had opposition campaigns. Campaigns in support of ballot measures received approximately 69 percent of the total raised, and opposition campaigns received about 31 percent.

State	Number of measures	State total contributions	Percentage of U.S. total contributions
Colorado	2	$10,426,497.59	37.56%
Kansas	1	$0.00	0.00%
Louisiana	4	$736,331.37	2.63%
Maine	2	$0.00	0.00%
New Jersey	1	$0.00	0.00%
Pennsylvania	1	$6,650,000.00	23.96%
Texas	10	$909,470.18	3.28%
Washington	15	$9,317,974.94	33.57%

Contributions per vote

One method for analyzing the effectiveness of campaigns is to look at the size of their funds relative to the number of votes their position received. This is a contributions-per-votes (CPV) amount.

Combined contributions per vote

The most expensive ballot measure of 2019 was the Pennsylvania Marsy's Law Crime Victims Rights Amendment. Supporters of the amendment raised $6.65 million. There were no funds raised opposing the measure. A total of 2,385,488 residents voted on the amendment (74% in support and 26% against), resulting in a CPV of $2.79. The amendment received a majority of votes in support, however, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court enjoined Acting Secretary of State Kathy Boockvar from certifying election results, pending a court ruling on whether the amendment violates the state constitution's requirement that separate amendments receive separate votes.

Colorado Proposition CC was the second-most expensive measure in 2019 and it also had the highest CPV. Supporters and opponents of the measure raised a combined $6.56 million. A total of 1,562,342 residents voted on the amendment (46% in support and 54% against), resulting in a CPV of $4.20.

The measure with the lowest CPV was Texas Proposition 4, which prohibited the state from levying an income tax on individuals. The CPV was less than one-sixth of one cent. In total, 1.99 million residents voted on the measure (74% in favor and 26% against). The Texans for Prop 4 campaign raised $3,000 to support the measure's passage.

Of the 36 measures on the 2019 ballot, 10 measures had campaign finance activity. The following table includes the combined support and opposition CPV for all ten ballot measures with campaign finance activity in 2019.

Measure	Outcome	Votes	Contributions	CPV
Pennsylvania Marsy's Law	a	2,385,488	$6,650,000.00	$2.79
Washington I-976	a	1,992,500	$5,908,927.37	$2.97
Washington R-88	d	1,925,663	$3,409,047.57	$1.77
Colorado Proposition DD	a	1,557,457	$3,866,554.44	$2.48
Colorado Proposition CC	d	1,562,342	$6,559,943.15	$4.20
Texas Proposition 5	a	1,983,009	$733,328.72	$0.37
Louisiana Amendment 4	d	1,213,393	$486,331.37	$0.40
Louisiana Amendment 1	d	1,218,050	$250,000.00	$0.21
Texas Proposition 6	a	1,967,337	$176,141.46	$0.09
Texas Proposition 4	a	1,986,920	$3,000.00	$0.0015

Top support

The highest CPV amount for a campaign supporting a ballot measure was $6.41. The committees funding the campaign were Coloradans for Prosperity and the Great Education Colorado Issue Committee which supported Colorado Proposition CC. The campaign raised $4.64 million in support of the measure, which received 46% of the vote on November 5, 2019.

The following table illustrates CPV for the support campaigns only: the amount raised in support of the initiative per each vote cast in favor of the measure.

Measure	Outcome	Support votes	Support contributions	Support CPV
Pennsylvania Marsy's Law	a	1,765,384	$6,650,000.00	$3.77
Washington I-976	a	1,055,749	$695,348.94	$0.66
Washington R-88	d	952,053	$1,885,431.50	$1.98
Colorado Proposition CC	d	724,060	$4,638,093.25	$6.41
Colorado Proposition DD	a	800,745	$3,866,554.44	$4.83
Texas Proposition 5	a	1,745,353	$733,328.72	$0.42
Louisiana Amendment 4	d	1,477,373	$3,000.00	$0.002
Louisiana Amendment 1	d	1,745,353	$250,000.00	$0.43
Texas Proposition 6	a	1,259,398	$176,141.46	$0.14
Texas Proposition 4	a	1,986,920	$3,000.00	$0.0015

Top opposition

Of the 10 measures with campaign finance activity, three saw opposition campaigns. The highest CPV amount for a campaign opposing a ballot measure was $5.57. The campaign was Keep WA Rolling which opposed Washington I-976. The campaign raised $5.2 million opposing the measure, which was approved by a vote of 53% to 47%.

The following table illustrates CPV for the opposition campaigns only: the amount raised opposing the initiative per each vote cast against the measure.

Measure	Outcome	Opposition votes	Opposition contributions	Opposition CPV
Colorado Proposition CC	d	838,282	$1,921,849.90	$2.29
Washington I-976	a	936,751	$5,213,578.43	$5.57
Washington R-88	d	973,610	$1,523,616.07	$1.56

Support vs. opposition contributions

Of the three measures that had both active support and opposition campaigns, the side with the most money lost in all three cases. Of all measures on the ballot, including those with $0.00 in opposition contributions, the side with the most money lost in five cases and won in the other five cases. This is displayed in the chart below.

Measure	Outcome	Support contributions	Opposition contributions	Money side: won or lost?
Washington R-88	d	$1,885,431.50	$1,523,616.07	Lost
Colorado Proposition CC	d	$4,638,093.25	$1,921,849.90	Lost
Louisiana Amendment 4	d	$486,331.37	$0.00	Lost
Louisiana Amendment 1	d	$250,000.00	$0.00	Lost
Washington I-976	a	$695,348.94	$5,213,578.43	Lost
Colorado Proposition DD	a	$3,866,554.44	$0.00	Won
Pennsylvania Marsy's Law	a	$6,650,000.00	$0.00	Won
Texas Proposition 5	a	$733,328.72	$0.00	Won
Texas Proposition 6	a	$176,141.46	$0.00	Won
Texas Proposition 4	a	$3,000.00	$0.00	Won

Comparison to prior years

In 2017, contributions to ballot measure campaigns reached a combined total of $108.8 million. The average amount spent on a ballot measure was $4.03 million, with $25.31 million as the average for the four citizen-initiated measures and $3.6 million as the average for the 23 legislative and automatic referrals. These averages were an increase from 2015, when a total of $32.1 million was raised for campaigns surrounding 28 ballot measures. An average of $1.1 million was raised per measure, with $4.3 million as the average for the five initiatives and $460,083 as the average for the 23 legislative referrals.

The table below provides a comparison of total and average contributions to ballot measure campaigns in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019.

Contributions and average contributions by year
Year		Initiatives	Referrals	Total
2015	Total	$21,514,284.70	$10,581,912.61	$32,096,197.31
	Average per measure	$4,302,856.94	$460,083.16	$1,146,292.76
2016	Total	$936,000,000	$76,000,000	$1,012,000,000.00
	Average per measure	$12,318,977.91	$881,907.49	$6,246,913.58
2017	Total	$101,243,242.47	$7,520,734.80	$108,763,977.27
	Average per measure	$25,310,810.62	$326,988.47	$4,028,295.45
2018	Total	$984,133,527.91	$201,569,517.77	$1,185,703,045.68
	Average per measure	$14,472,551.88	$2,036,055.74	$7,100,018.24
2019	Total	$9,317,974.94	$18,722,299.14	$28,040,274.08
	Average per measure	$4,658,987.47	$550,655.86	$778,896.50

Ballot language readability scores

In 2019, Ballotpedia estimated the reading difficulty of ballot measures' titles and summaries using two formulas, the Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) and Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL). The formulas account for the number of syllables, words, and sentences in the ballot language, but not the difficulty or complexity of the ideas expressed in ballot language.

The entire report can be viewed here: Ballot measure readability scores, 2019.

In 2019, the average FKGL for the ballot titles or questions of all statewide ballot measures was 15 years of education, which is comparable to a Bachelor's degree. The average state scores ranged from 6 to 27.

The following table provides information on the average FKGL scores for ballot titles and summaries by state:

Readability averages by state
State	Average title grade	Average # of words	Average summary grade	Average # of words	Number of measures
Colorado	27	59	N/A	N/A	2
Kansas	23	108	N/A	N/A	1
Louisiana	19	41	N/A	N/A	4
Maine	17	30	N/A	N/A	2
New Jersey	17	70	13	171	1
Pennsylvania	10	73	N/A	N/A	1
Texas	20	28	N/A	N/A	10
Washington	9	40	15	82	15

See also

• 2019 ballot measures
• Ballot measure readability scores, 2019
• Ballot measure signature costs, 2019
• Ballot measure campaign finance, 2019
• Ballot Measure Scorecard, 2019
• Ballotpedia's Tuesday Count for 2019
• List of ballot measure lawsuits in 2019
• 2019 ballot measure polls
• 2019 ballot measure media endorsements