Massachusetts Question 1, Sporting Activities on Sundays Initiative (1928)
| Massachusetts Question 1 | |
|---|---|
|
|
|
| Election date |
|
| Topic Athletics and sports and Sunday regulations |
|
| Status |
|
| Type Indirect initiated state statute |
Origin |
Massachusetts Question 1 was on the ballot as an indirect initiated state statute in Massachusetts on November 6, 1928. It was approved.
A “yes” vote supported permitting certain sporting activities on Sundays. |
A “no” vote opposed permitting certain sporting activities on Sundays. |
Election results
|
Massachusetts Question 1 |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
|
|
803,281 | 63.21% | ||
| No | 467,550 | 36.79% | ||
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title for Question 1 was as follows:
| “ | Shall the proposed law which provides that it shall be lawful in any city which accepts the act by vote of its City Council and in any town which accepts the act by vote of its inhabitants, to take part in or witness any athletic outdoor sport or game, except horse racing, automobile racing, boxing or hunting with firearms, on the Lord's day between 2 and 6 P. M.: that such sports or games shall take place on such playgrounds, parks or other places as may be designated in a license issued by certain licensing authorities; that no sport or game shall be permitted in a place other than a public playground or park within one thousand feet of any regular place of worship: that the charging of admission fees or the taking of collections or the receiving of remuneration by any person in charge of or participating in any such sport or game shall not be prohibited: that the license may be revoked: and that in cities and towns in which amateur sports or games are permitted under existing law such amateur sports or games may be held until the proposed law is accepted or the provisions of the existing law fail of acceptance resubmission to the people, which law was disapproved in the Senate by a vote of 9 in the affirmative and 22 in the negative, and in the House of Representatives by a vote of 93 in the affirmative and 110 in the negative, be approved? | ” |
Path to the ballot
Before 1952, citizen-initiated ballot measures in Massachusetts required a fixed number of signatures. In 1950, voters approved a constitutional amendment changing this to a percentage-based system, tying the number of required signatures to ballots cast in the most recent gubernatorial election. Before 1952, the signature requirement for indirect initiated state statutes was 20,000, with an additional 5,000 if the Legislature rejected the proposal and proponents wanted it placed on the ballot.
See also
External links
- William Francis Galvin Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, "Massachusetts Statewide Ballot Measures: 1919-Present"
- The Boston Globe, "CITY OF BOSTON STATE ELECTION," October 27, 1928
Footnotes
 |
State of Massachusetts Boston (capital) |
|---|---|
| Elections |
What's on my ballot? | Elections in 2025 | How to vote | How to run for office | Ballot measures |
| Government |
Who represents me? | U.S. President | U.S. Congress | Federal courts | State executives | State legislature | State and local courts | Counties | Cities | School districts | Public policy |
