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Massachusetts Question 1, Change Redistricting Rules for Town Divisions Amendment (1930)
| Massachusetts Question 1 | |
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| Election date |
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| Topic Redistricting policy |
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| Status |
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| Type Legislatively referred constitutional amendment |
Origin |
Massachusetts Question 1 was on the ballot as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment in Massachusetts on November 4, 1930. It was approved.
A “yes” vote supported this constitutional amendment to:
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A “no” vote opposed changing the redistricting process, keeping existing rules for how towns are divided, who draws district lines, when new districts take effect, and how redistricting can be challenged in court. |
Election results
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Massachusetts Question 1 |
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| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
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443,618 | 73.60% | ||
| No | 159,119 | 26.40% | ||
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title for Question 1 was as follows:
| “ | Shall an amendment to the constitution relative to the apportionment of senatorial, representative and councillor districts, further described as follows: The proposed amendment of the Constitution provides for the annulment of Article XXI of the Articles of Amendment of the Constitution and the substitution therefor of a new Article XXI, and for the annulment of Article XXII of the Articles of Amendment of the Constitution and the substitution therefor of a new Article XXII. The proposed amendment embodies in substance the following changes in and additions to said Articles XXI and XXII: 1. In proposed Article XXI, towns of twelve thousand inhabitants or more may be divided in forming representative districts. No precincts, however, in such towns may be divided. In taking the census the special enumeration of legal voters Shall specify the number residing in Peach precinct of such towns. Under existing Amendment XXI no town may be divided and no specification- of the number of voters in a precinct is required. 2. The division of a county into representative districts and the apportionment of representatives to districts therein is to be made by "The county commissioners or other body acting as such or, in lieu thereof, such board of special commissioners in each county as may for that purpose be provided by law, "Under Article XXI as it now stands the division and apportionment is made by The mayor and aldermen of the city of Boston, the county commissioners of other counties than Suffolk,-or in 1ieu of the mayor and aldermen of the city of Boston, or of the county commissioners in each county other than Suffolk, such board of special commissioners in each county, to be elected by the people of the count or of the towns therein, as may for that purpose be provided by law… The time for assembling of such commissioners, board or body for the purpose of making such division and apportionment is also changed, from the first Tuesday of August next after each assignment by the Legislature of the number of representatives to each county, to a time within thirty days after certification by the Secretary of the Commonwealth to such commissioners, board or body of the number so assigned, or within such other period as the General Court may by law provide. 3. Under the proposed Articles, each special enumeration shall be the basis for determining the districts, Senatorial, representative and councillor, for the ten-year period beginning in the fourth January following said special enumeration and the present division of districts is to remain in effect until January 1939. Under the existing amendments the ten-year period is the period between the taking of each census. (Thus, the next redivision based upon the next census in 1935 would, under the proposed Articles, affect those elected in 1938 to hold office beginning in January 1939, instead of affecting those elected in 1936 to hold office beginning in January 1937. Under existing amendments representation of newly created districts begins in January of the second year after each ten-year census, whereas under the proposed article it would begin In January of the fourth year thereafter.) The number of representatives (240), senators (40), and councillors (8) be not changed. 4. The Legislature may limit the time within which a division of representative, councillor or senatorial districts may be questioned by Judicial proceedings, The existing Amendments contain no provision that itself limits or authorizes the Legislature to limit such time which received in a joint session of the two Houses held May 17, 1928, 1NG votes in the affirmative and 48 in the negative, and at Joint Session of the two Houses held May 26, 1930, received 155 votes in the affirmative and 88 In the negative, be approved? | ” |
Path to the ballot
- See also: Amending the Massachusetts Constitution
A simple majority vote is required during two successive joint legislative sessions for the Massachusetts State Legislature to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot. That amounts to a minimum of 101 votes in the joint session of the state legislature, assuming no vacancies. Amendments do not require the governor's signature to be referred to the ballot.
See also
External links
- William Francis Galvin Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, "Massachusetts Statewide Ballot Measures: 1919-Present"
- Transcript-Telegram Suburban News, "ELECTION NOTICE," October 27, 1930
Footnotes
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