Missouri Amendment 7, Require Citizenship to Vote and Prohibit Ranked-Choice Voting Amendment (2024)

Missouri Amendment 7
Election date November 5, 2024
Topic Voting policy measures and Electoral systems
Status On the ballot
Type Constitutional amendment	Origin State legislature

Missouri Amendment 7, the Require Citizenship to Vote and Prohibit Ranked-Choice Voting Amendment, is on the ballot in Missouri as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment on November 5, 2024.

A "yes" vote supports amending the state constitution to: provide that only U.S. citizens 18 years or older can vote, thereby prohibiting the state or local governments from allowing non-citizen voting; establish that each voter has one vote per issue or open seat; prohibit ranked-choice voting; and require plurality primary elections, where one winner advances to the general election.

A "no" vote opposes this amendment, thereby maintaining that "all citizens of the United States" who are 18 years of age or older may vote in elections and that ranked-choice voting may be enacted at the local or state level via ordinance or state statute.

Additional information on electoral system ballot measures
As of October 30, 2024, 11 statewide ballot measures related to electoral system changes, including ranked-choice voting and top primary elections, were certified in Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, and South Dakota.

• You can find a list of 2024's certified measures here and analysis on supporters and opponents of RCV here.

• Information on ranked-choice voting ballot measures since 1965 is available here: History of ranked-choice voting (RCV) ballot measures.

Overview

How would the amendment affect election policy in Missouri?

See also: Text of measure

Citizenship voting requirement The measure would amend the Missouri Constitution to add language to provide that "Only citizens of the United States, including occupants of soldiers' and sailors' homes, over the age of eighteen who are residents of this state and of the political subdivision in which they offer to vote are entitled to vote at all elections by the people." Currently, the constitution states, "All citizens of the United States..."

Prohibit ranked-choice voting The amendment would also establish that each voter has one vote per issue or open seat. The amendment would prohibit the ranking of candidates. The amendment would also prohibit top-two primaries, top-four primaries, and other similar electoral systems. It would require primary elections in which only one candidate from each political party, the one who receives the most votes, advances to the general election. It would also add language establishing that the candidate receiving the greatest number of votes at the general election is declared the winner. This would not apply to any nonpartisan municipal election that is in effect as of November 5, 2024, such as St. Louis, where approval voting is used.

What do other state constitutions say about suffrage and citizenship?

See also: State constitutions on suffrage and citizenship

In 1996, the U.S. Congress passed a law prohibiting noncitizens from voting in federal elections, such as U.S. House, U.S. Senate, and presidential elections. Federal law did not address state or local elections.

All state constitutions mention United States citizenship when discussing who can vote in that state's elections. In 43 states, constitutional language discussing citizenship says who can vote (e.g. "every citizen" or "all citizens"), but does not state that noncitizens cannot vote. In seven states (Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, North Dakota, and Ohio) the states' constitutions provide that citizens, but not noncitizens, have the right to vote. No state constitutions explicitly allowed noncitizens to vote in state or local elections. Since 2018, constitutional amendments to state that only a citizen (rather than every citizen) may vote were approved in six states.

Have other states prohibited ranked-choice voting?

As of June 2024, 10 states—Alabama, Florida, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Tennessee—have enacted legislation banning the use of ranked-choice voting statewide. The prohibitions were enacted via state statute. This measure would be the first RCV prohibition enacted via state constitutional amendment.

RCV is used statewide in three states—Alaska, Maine, and Hawaii (in certain statewide elections). Fourteen other states contain localities that either use or are scheduled to begin using RCV in municipal elections. To see the status of RCV in each state, click here.

Are other states voting on similar measures in 2024?

See also: Background

Bans on noncitizen voting at the state level have become more frequent since 2018. Voters in six states approved ballot measures banning noncitizen voting from 2018 to 2022. In 2024, eight state legislatures referred constitutional amendments to the ballot to prohibit the state or local governments from allowing non-citizen voting. The eight states are Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Wisconsin.

As of 2024, municipalities in California, Maryland, and Vermont, along with Washington, D.C., allowed noncitizens to vote in some local elections. In November, voters in Santa Ana, California, will decide on a ballot measure to allow noncitizens to vote in municipal elections.

Jack Tomczak, Vice President of Americans for Citizen Voting, which supports the ballot measures, said, "We, and legislators who sponsor these, are getting ahead of fixing a problem that maybe has not reared its head as much in these states. It’s not like it’s happening everywhere and it must be stopped immediately. But preemption is not a bad thing." Jonathan Diaz, Director of Voting Advocacy for the Campaign Legal Center, said, "These proposed constitutional amendments are aimed really at two things: preventing local governments in those states from allowing non-U.S. citizens to vote in local elections, and advancing this false narrative that non-U.S. citizens are somehow participating in U.S. elections in large numbers, which is totally unsupported by any evidence or facts."

Text of measure

Ballot title

The official ballot title is as follows:

“

Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to: Make the Constitution consistent with state law by only allowing citizens of the United States to vote; Prohibit the ranking of candidates by limiting voters to a single vote per candidate or issue; and Require the plurality winner of a political party primary to be the single candidate at a general election? State and local governmental entities estimate no costs or savings.

”

Ballot summary

The official ballot summary is as follows:

“

A “yes” vote will amend the Missouri Constitution to specify that only United States citizens are entitled to vote, voters shall only have a single vote for each candidate or issue, restrict any type of ranking of candidates for a particular office and require the person receiving the greatest number of votes at the primary election as a party candidate for an office shall be the only candidate for that party at the general election, and require the person receiving the greatest number of votes for each office at the general election shall be declared the winner. This provision does not apply to any nonpartisan municipal election held in a city that had an ordinance in effect as of November 5, 2024, that requires a preliminary election at which more than one candidate advances to a subsequent election. A “no” vote will not amend the Missouri Constitution to make any changes to how voters vote in primary and general elections. If passed, this measure will have no impact on taxes.

”

Constitutional changes

See also: Article VIII, Missouri Constitution

The measure would amend Sections 2 and 3 of Article VIII and add one new section, Section 24, to the Missouri Constitution. The following underlined text would be added, and struck-through text would be deleted: Note: Use your mouse to scroll over the text below to see the full text.

Section 2. All Only citizens of the United States, including occupants of soldiers' and sailors' homes, over the age of eighteen who are residents of this state and of the political subdivision in which they offer to vote are entitled to vote at all elections by the people, if the election is one for which registration is required if they are registered within the time prescribed by law, or if the election is one for which registration is not required, if they have been residents of the political subdivision in which they offer to vote for thirty days next preceding the election for which they offer to vote: Provided however, no person who has a guardian of his or her estate or person by reason of mental incapacity, appointed by a court of competent jurisdiction and no person who is involuntarily confined in a mental institution pursuant to an adjudication of a court of competent jurisdiction shall be entitled to vote, and persons convicted of felony, or crime connected with the exercise of the right of suffrage may be excluded by law from voting. Section 3. 1. All elections by the people shall be by paper ballot or by any mechanical method prescribed by law. 2. Voters shall have only a single vote for each issue on which such voter is eligible to vote. Voters shall have the same number of votes for an office as the number of open seats to be elected to such office at that election. Under no circumstance shall a voter be permitted to cast a ballot in a manner that results in the ranking of candidates for a particular office. Notwithstanding any provision of this subsection to the contrary, this subsection shall not apply to any nonpartisan municipal election held in a city that had an ordinance in effect as of November 5, 2024, that permits voters to cast more than a single vote for each issue or candidate on which such voter is eligible to vote. 3. All election officers shall be sworn or affirmed not to disclose how any voter voted; provided, that in cases of contested elections, grand jury investigations and in the trial of all civil or criminal cases in which the violation of any law relating to elections, including nominating elections, is under investigation or at issue, such officers may be required to testify and the ballots cast may be opened, examined, counted, and received as evidence. Section 24. 1. The person receiving the greatest number of votes at a primary election as a party candidate for an office shall be the only candidate for that party for the office at the general election. The name of such candidate shall be placed on the official ballot at the general election unless removed or replaced as provided by law. 2. The person receiving the greatest number of votes at the general election shall be declared the winner. 3. Notwithstanding any provision of this section to the contrary, this section shall not apply to any nonpartisan municipal election held in a city that had an ordinance in effect as of November 5, 2024, that requires a preliminary election at which more than one candidate advances to a subsequent election.

Readability score

See also: Ballot measure readability scores, 2024

Using the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL) and Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) formulas, Ballotpedia scored the readability of the ballot title and summary for this measure. Readability scores are designed to indicate the reading difficulty of text. The Flesch-Kincaid formulas account for the number of words, syllables, and sentences in a text; they do not account for the difficulty of the ideas in the text. The secretary of state wrote the ballot language for this measure.

The FKGL for the ballot title is grade level 10, and the FRE is 41. The word count for the ballot title is 69.

The FKGL for the ballot summary is grade level 21, and the FRE is 21. The word count for the ballot summary is 168.

Support

See also: Support and opposition to 2024 ranked-choice voting ballot measures

Supporters

Officials

• State Sen. Ben Brown (R)
• State Rep. Ben Baker (R)
• Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe (R)
• State Treasurer Vivek Malek (R)

Former Officials

• Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli (R)

Organizations

• Election Transparency Initiative
• Fair Elections Fund
• Honest Elections Project
• Stop RCV

Arguments

• National Chairman of the Election Transparency Initiative and former Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli (R): "Only U.S. citizens should decide the outcome of U.S. elections—one person, one vote counted fairly and equally. Left-wing schemes that destroy this solemn, foundational principle should always be prohibited."
• Executive Director of Honest Elections Project Action and Chair of the national Stop RCV coalition Jason Snead: "This important measure protects Missouri’s elections from noncitizen voting and Ranked-Choice Voting, two schemes backed by the far-left to fundamentally remake American politics. Thanks to the leadership of Speaker Plocher, Sen. Brown, Rep. Baker, the people of Missouri will have a chance to defend fair elections this November!"
• State Rep. Adam Schwadron (R-106): "In our opinion, the language in our constitution is ambiguous. When you have the word ‘all’ citizens are able to vote instead of ‘only,’ that still does not preclude any local municipality from allowing non-citizens to vote."
• Lt. Gov. and Republican nominee for governor Mike Kehoe: "We need Amendment 7 to secure our elections in Missouri. Immigrants who lawfully become naturalized citizens have worked very hard to achieve their right to participate in our elections. I’m proud to endorse this commonsense measure because it respects the efforts of countless individuals who truly understand the gift that it means to be an American citizen, and I ask Missourians to join me in ensuring its passage on November 5th."

Opposition

See also: Support and opposition to 2024 ranked-choice voting ballot measures

Preserve Local Elections is leading the campaign in opposition to the amendment.

Opponents

Officials

• State Rep. Eric Woods (D)

Organizations

• Better Ballot KC

Arguments

• Larry Bradley, a member of Better Ballot KC which supports RCV: "This is a blatant attempt to keep ranked-choice voting from being authorized for use in the state of Missouri."
• Benjamin D. Singer, chief executive officer of Show Me Integrity: "This year, the Missouri General Assembly passed a deceptive measure that could actually make it harder for us to hold our leaders accountable. You will see this measure on your November ballot, claiming that it stops noncitizens from voting—even though that has been illegal for a century. It’s an unnecessary and misleading proposal ... Buried in this misleading language is the heart of the amendment: hurting local control by attacking your freedom to decide what type of elections you want in your city or county."
• Preserve Local Elections: "As you can see in the wording of the second point, this amendment would wipe out all alternative voting systems. We don’t need to settle the question of which voting system is best. We can let localities settle that question for themselves, as long as they’re not banned from doing so by this amendment."

Campaign finance

See also: Campaign finance requirements for Missouri ballot measures

The campaign finance information on this page reflects the most recent scheduled reports that Ballotpedia has processed, which covered through October 24, 2024. The deadline for the next scheduled reports is December 5, 2024.

Ballotpedia has not identified any committees registered in support of the amendment. If you are aware of any committees, send information to editor@ballotpedia.org.

Preserve Local Elections is the campaign registered to oppose the amendment.

	Cash Contributions	In-Kind Contributions	Total Contributions	Cash Expenditures	Total Expenditures
Support	$0.00	$0.00	$0.00	$0.00	$0.00
Oppose	$1,426.35	$0.00	$1,426.35	$3,561.60	$3,561.60

Opposition

The following table includes contribution and expenditure totals for the committees in opposition to the measure.

Committees in opposition to Amendment 7
Committee	Cash Contributions	In-Kind Contributions	Total Contributions	Cash Expenditures	Total Expenditures
Preserve Local Elections	$1,426.35	$0.00	$1,426.35	$3,561.60	$3,561.60
Total	$1,426.35	$0.00	$1,426.35	$3,561.60	$3,561.60

Media editorials

See also: 2024 ballot measure media endorsements

Support

The following media editorial boards published an editorial supporting the ballot measure:

You can share campaign information or arguments, along with source links for this information, at editor@ballotpedia.org

Opposition

The following media editorial boards published an editorial opposing the ballot measure:

• The Kansas City Star Editorial Board: "Missouri Amendment 7 deals with how elections are run in the state. The question asks voters to 'make the Constitution consistent with state law by only allowing citizens of the United States to vote.' We recommend a no vote. This is classic 'ballot candy': adding something to the ballot that sounds good to voters but has no practical effect."

Polls

See also: 2024 ballot measure polls

Are you aware of a poll on this ballot measure that should be included below? You can share ballot measure polls, along with source links, with us at editor@ballotpedia.org.

Missouri Amendment 7, Require Citizenship to Vote and Prohibit Ranked-Choice Voting Amendment (2024)
Poll	Dates	Sample size	Margin of error	Support	Oppose	Undecided

Public Opinion Strategies	09/04/2024-09/09/2024	600 RV	± 4.0%	62%	29%	N/A%
	Question: "The following is a ballot measure that voters in Missouri will be asked to vote on in the upcoming November election. The measure reads: Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to; Make the Constitution consistent with state law by only allowing citizens of the United States to vote; Prohibit the ranking of candidates by limiting voters to a single vote per candidate or issue; and Require the plurality winner of a political party primary to be the single candidate at a general election. Now, if the election were being held today, would you vote Yes to approve or No to reject this ballot measure?"
Note: LV is likely voters, RV is registered voters, and EV is eligible voters.

Background

Ranked-choice voting

As of October 2024, ranked-choice voting is used in some states and localities across the United States. See the map, tables, and list below for further details. The numbers below do not include states where RCV is used by a political party for partisan primaries, or where military/UOCAVA voters use ranked ballots for runoff elections. For more information on these uses of RCV, see the table beneath the map below.

If you know of any additional U.S. localities using RCV that should be included here, please email editor@ballotpedia.org.

• RCV used statewide: Three states use RCV statewide. Alaska and Maine use RCV in federal and statewide elections. Hawaii uses RCV in certain statewide elections.
• RCV used (or scheduled for use) in some localities: Fourteen states contain localities that either use or are scheduled to begin using RCV in municipal elections.
• RCV prohibited: Ten states have enacted legislation prohibiting the use of RCV in any elections.
• No laws addressing RCV, not in use: Twenty-two states have no laws addressing RCV, and neither the state nor any localities in the state use it.

The map below shows which states use ranked-choice voting statewide or in some localities as of October 2024. It also shows the states where RCV is either prohibited or not addressed in the law. It does not show states where RCV is used by a political party for partisan primaries, or where military/UOCAVA voters use ranked ballots for runoff elections. See the table beneath the map for details on these uses of RCV.

States prohibiting RCV

As of June 2024, the following 10 states—Alabama, Florida, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Tennessee—have enacted legislation banning the use of ranked-choice voting statewide. For more information on anti-RCV legislation, read more in Ballotpedia News.

St. Louis Proposition D, Approval Voting Initiative (2020)

See also: St. Louis, Missouri, Proposition D, Approval Voting Initiative (November 2020)

In November 2020, St. Louis voters approved Proposition D with a vote margin of 68.2% to 31.8%. Proposition D made elections open and nonpartisan for the offices of mayor, comptroller, president of the Board of Aldermen, and the Board of Aldermen and changed the primary election system from plurality voting to approval voting. An approval voting system is an electoral system in which voters may vote for any number of candidates they choose. In St. Louis, the top two candidates in the primary would compete in a runoff election.

Citizenship voting requirement ballot measures

Since 2018, voters have decided on six ballot measures related to adding language about citizenship requirements for voting. Voters approved all six measures with at least 62.9% of the vote. In 2024, eight states are voting on ballot measures addressing citizenship requirements for voting.

State	Year	Ballot Measure	Type	Status
North Dakota	2018	North Dakota Measure 2	Initiated constitutional amendment	Approved
Alabama	2020	Alabama Amendment 1	Legislatively referred constitutional amendment	Approved
Florida	2020	Florida Amendment 1	Initiated constitutional amendment	Approved
Colorado	2020	Colorado Amendment 76	Initiated constitutional amendment	Approved
Ohio	2022	Ohio Issue 2	Legislatively referred constitutional amendment	Approved
Louisiana	2022	Louisiana Amendment 1	Legislatively referred constitutional amendment	Approved
Iowa	2024	Iowa Amendment 1	Legislatively referred constitutional amendment	On the ballot
Wisconsin	2024	Wisconsin Citizenship Voting Requirement Amendment	Legislatively referred constitutional amendment	On the ballot
Kentucky	2024	Kentucky Constitutional Amendment 1	Legislatively referred constitutional amendment	On the ballot
Idaho	2024	Idaho HJR 5	Legislatively referred constitutional amendment	On the ballot
South Carolina	2024	South Carolina Citizenship Requirement for Voting Amendment	Legislatively referred constitutional amendment	On the ballot
Missouri	2024	Missouri Amendment 7	Legislatively referred constitutional amendment	On the ballot
Oklahoma	2024	Oklahoma State Question 834	Legislatively referred constitutional amendment	On the ballot
North Carolina	2024	North Carolina Citizenship Requirement for Voting Amendment	Legislatively referred constitutional amendment	On the ballot

Partisanship of legislative votes on referred measures

The following table shows the percentage of Democratic and Republican legislators that supported referring constitutional amendments to the state's ballot requiring citizenship to vote. The average percent of Republican support was 100% while the average percent of Democratic support was 45.6%.

In Alabama and Iowa, legislators passed the referrals with unanimous support from both parties.

State constitutions on suffrage and citizenship

All state constitutions mention United States citizenship when discussing who can vote in that state's elections. In 43 states, constitutional language discussing citizenship says who can vote (e.g. "every citizen" or "all citizens"), but does not state that noncitizens cannot vote. In seven states (Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, North Dakota, and Ohio) the states' constitutions provide that citizens, but not noncitizens, have the right to vote.

Path to the ballot

Amending the Missouri Constitution

See also: Amending the Missouri Constitution

A simple majority vote is required during one legislative session for the Missouri General Assembly to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot. That amounts to a minimum of 82 votes in the Missouri House of Representatives and 18 votes in the Missouri State Senate, assuming no vacancies. Amendments do not require the governor's signature to be referred to the ballot.

Senate Joint Resolution 78

The amendment was prefiled on December 1, 2023. The Missouri State Senate voted 24-9 to pass the amendment on April 9, 2024. The Missouri House of Representatives passed the amendment on May 17 by a vote of 97-43 with 22 present or not voting. Both votes were along party lines.

Vote in the Missouri State Senate April 9, 2024
Requirement: Simple majority vote of all members in each chamber
Number of yes votes required: 17  a
	Yes	No	Not voting
Total	24	9	0
Total percent	72.7%	27.2%	0%
Democrat	0	9	0
Republican	24	0	0

Vote in the Missouri House of Representatives May 17, 2024
Requirement: Simple majority vote of all members in each chamber
Number of yes votes required: 82  a
	Yes	No	Not voting
Total	97	43	22
Total percent	59.9%	26.5%	13.6%
Democrat	0	43	8
Republican	97	0	14

Lawsuit

Lawsuit overview
Issue: Whether the ballot question is accurate
Court: Missouri 19th Judicial Circuit Court
Plaintiff(s): Elizabeth de Laperouse and Eric Bronner	Defendant(s): Rep. Dean Plocher (R), Sen. Caleb Rowden (R), Sen. Ben Brown (R), and Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft (R)

  Source: Missouri 19th Judicial Circuit Court

How to cast a vote

See also: Voting in Missouri

Click "Show" to learn more about current voter registration rules, identification requirements, and poll times in Missouri.

How to cast a vote in Missouri

Poll times In Missouri, all polling places are open from 6:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Central Time. An individual who is in line at the time polls close must be allowed to vote. Registration Check your voter registration status here. To vote in Missouri, one must be 18 years old, a United States citizen, and Missouri resident. An applicant may print an application, pick one up from a county clerk's office, or request that an application be mailed. The completed application must be returned by mail. All returned applications must be postmarked at least 27 days prior to Election Day in order to be processed. An applicant may also register to vote online. Automatic registration Missouri does not practice automatic voter registration. Online registration See also: Online voter registration Missouri has implemented an online voter registration system. Residents can register to vote by visiting this website. Same-day registration Missouri does not allow same-day voter registration. Residency requirements To register to vote in Missouri, you must be a resident of the state. State law does not specify the length of time for which you must have been a resident to be eligible. Voters may file change-of-address forms after the registration deadline, up to and including Election Day, provided that they can present photo identification upon doing so. Verification of citizenship See also: Laws permitting noncitizens to vote in the United States Missouri requires those registering to vote by mail for the first time to provide a form of identification that shows proof of United States citizenship. Verifying your registration The Missouri Secretary of State's office allows residents to check their voter registration status online. Voter ID requirements Missouri requires voters to present photo identification while voting. The following were accepted forms of identification as of April 2023. Click here for the Missouri Secretary of State's page on accepted ID to ensure you have the most current information. Voters can present the following forms of information: A nonexpired Missouri driver or non-driver license; A nonexpired military ID, including a veteran’s ID card; A nonexpired United States passport; or Another photo ID issued by the United States or the state of Missouri which is either not expired or expired after the date of the most recent general election. If a voter does not have an ID, he or she can obtain one for free by filling out this form.

See also

2024 measures

• 2024 ballot measures
• Voting policy measures on the ballot
• Electoral systems on the ballot
• Suffrage on the ballot
• 2024 legislative sessions

Missouri

• Missouri ballot measures
• Missouri ballot measure laws

News and analysis

• Ballot measure lawsuits
• Ballot measure readability
• Ballot measure polls

External links

• SJR 78 (2024)