Missouri Vote to Change Election Laws and Measure Signature Gathering Initiative (2020)
| Missouri Vote to Change Election Laws and Measure Signature Gathering Initiative | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 3, 2020 | |
| Topic Direct democracy measures | |
| Status Not on the ballot | |
| Type Constitutional amendment | Origin Citizens |
The Missouri Vote to Change Election Laws and Measure Signature Gathering Initiative was not on the ballot in Missouri as an initiated constitutional amendment on November 3, 2020.
Damien Johnson filed three versions of the ballot initiative.[1]
The measure would have required voter approval for any changes to the state's election law. It would also have required the secretary of state to establish a process for electronically signing citizen signature petitions, including the maintenance of a system on the internet for electronic signatures and the provision of unique identification numbers for all registered voters. The initiative would have also set the following rules for signature petition efforts:[1]
- a prohibition against enacting any fees to file an initiative petition with the state;
- a prohibition against any state residency requirements for petition circulators; and
- a provision explicitly allowing the payment of signature gatherers according to the number of signatures collected (pay-per-signature) or according to any other payment arrangement agreed upon.
As of 2019, Missouri did not ban pay-per-signature or feature a residency requirement for petition circulators. The state constitution, however, did not have any provisions preventing these laws from being added into state statute.
Text of measure
Full text
The full texts of the ballot initiative filings are available here:[1]
Path to the ballot
Process in Missouri
In Missouri, the number of signatures required to qualify an initiated constitutional amendment for the ballot is equal to 8 percent of the votes cast for governor in the previous gubernatorial election in six of the eight state congressional districts. Signatures must be filed with the secretary of state six months prior to the election.
The requirements to get an initiated constitutional amendment certified for the 2020 ballot:
- Signatures: The smallest possible requirement was 160,199 valid signatures. The actual requirement depends on the congressional districts in which signatures were collected.
- Deadline: The deadline to submit signatures was May 3, 2020.
Once the signatures have been filed with the secretary of state, the secretary copies the petition sheets and transmits them to county election authorities for verification. The secretary of state may choose whether the signatures are to be verified by a 5 percent random sample or full verification. If the random sampling projects between 90 percent and 110 percent of required signatures, a full check of all signatures is required. If more than 110 percent, the initiative is certified, and, if less than 90 percent, the initiative fails.
Stages of this initiative
Damien Johnson filed versions of the ballot initiative on December 27, 2018; January 2, 2019; and January 7, 2019. On February 8, 2019, Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft (R) approved two of the proposals for signature gathering. On February 19, 2019, the third version was approved for signature gathering. Petitioners did not submit signatures by the May 3 deadline.[1]
See also
|
Footnotes
 |
State of Missouri Jefferson City (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 |
