Colorado Right to Local Self-Government Amendment (2016)
| Right to Local Self-Government Amendment | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 8, 2016 | |
| Topic Constitutional rights | |
| Status Not on the ballot | |
| Type Constitutional amendment | Origin Citizens |
| Not on Ballot |
|---|
 |
| This measure was not put on an election ballot |
The Right to Local Self-Government Amendment, also known as Initiative 40, did not qualify for the November 8, 2016, ballot in Colorado as an initiated constitutional amendment.
The measure would have amended the state constitution to declare that people have a right to local self-government in counties and municipalities.[1] The primary support group, Colorado Community Rights Network, announced that it did not collect enough signatures by the August 8, 2016, signature deadline.[2]
Text of the Measure
Ballot title
The ballot title and submission clause as designated and fixed by the Board was as follows:[3]
| “ | Shall there be an amendment to the Colorado constitution concerning a right to local self-government, and, in connection therewith, declaring that the people have an inherent right to local self-government in counties and municipalities, including the power to enact laws to establish, protect, and secure rights of natural persons, communities, and nature, as well as the power to define or eliminate the rights and powers of corporations or business entities to prevent them from interfering with those rights; and exempting such local laws from preemption or nullification by any federal, state, or international law if the local laws do not restrict fundamental rights or weaken legal protections for natural persons, their local communities, or nature?[4] | ” |
Full text
The full text of the measure can be read here.
Support
Supporters
- Colorado Community Rights Network[5]
Arguments in favor
Merrilly Mazza, president of the Colorado Community Rights Network, said,[5]
| “ | The communities that are impacted by this are told, ‘You have no rights and it’s up to industry' ... This is a democracy issue, and it should be the people deciding.[4] | ” |
Path to the ballot
- The proposed initiative was filed with the Colorado secretary of state's office on December 2, 2015, and the petition format was approved on March 16, 2016.[6]
- Initiative proponents needed to collect 98,492 signatures by August 8, 2016, to land the measure on the ballot.[6]
- Supporters did not collect enough signatures by the August 8, 2016, signature deadline.[2]
State profile
| Demographic data for Colorado | ||
|---|---|---|
| Colorado | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 5,448,819 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 103,642 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 84.2% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 4% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 2.9% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 0.9% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0.1% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 3.5% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 21.1% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 90.7% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 38.1% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $60,629 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 13.5% | 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 Colorado. **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 Colorado
Colorado voted for the Democratic candidate in five out of the seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.
Pivot Counties (2016)
Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, four are located in Colorado, accounting for 1.94 percent of the total pivot counties.[7]
Pivot Counties (2020)
In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Colorado had three Retained Pivot Counties and one Boomerang Pivot County, accounting for 1.66 and 4.00 percent of all Retained and Boomerang Pivot Counties, respectively.
More Colorado coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in Colorado
- United States congressional delegations from Colorado
- Public policy in Colorado
- Endorsers in Colorado
- Colorado fact checks
- More...
See also
- 2016 ballot measures
- Colorado 2016 ballot measures
- Laws governing the initiative process in Colorado
Footnotes
- ↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "Results for Proposed Initiative #40," accessed February 1, 2016
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 9News, "Colorado initiative to curb corporate rights won't make the ballot," July 22, 2016
- ↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "Results for proposed initiative #40," accessed March 19, 2016
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 The Journal, "Colorado activists set their sights on a ballot measure to limit drilling," February 23, 2016
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Colorado Secretary of State, "2015-2016 Proposed Initiatives," accessed July 7, 2016
- ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
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