New Hampshire Question 2, Right to Live Free from Governmental Intrusion in Private and Personal Information Amendment (2018)

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New Hampshire Question 2
Flag of New Hampshire.png
Election date
November 6, 2018
Topic
Constitutional rights
Status
Approveda Approved
Type
Constitutional amendment		Origin
State legislature

New Hampshire Question 2, the Right to Live Free from Governmental Intrusion in Private and Personal Information Amendment, was on the ballot in New Hampshire as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment on November 6, 2018.[1] The measure was approved.

A "yes" vote supported this amendment to provide that individuals have a right to live free from governmental intrusion in private or personal information.
A "no" vote opposed this amendment to provide that individuals have a right to live free from governmental intrusion in private or personal information.

In New Hampshire, a constitutional amendment needs a two-thirds (66.67 percent) supermajority vote vote of electors to be approved.

Election results

New Hampshire Question 2

Result Votes Percentage

Approved Yes

409,325 81.00%
No 96,019 19.00%
Results are officially certified.
Source

Overview

What did Question 2 add to the state constitution?

Question 2 added language to the New Hampshire Constitution stating that "An individual's right to live free from governmental intrusion in private or personal information is natural, essential, and inherent."[1]

How did Question 2 get on the ballot?

Rep. Neal Kurk (R-Hillsborough 2) and Rep. Robert Cushing (D-Rockingham 21) sponsored the amendment in the New Hampshire General Court. Question 2 was introduced into the state legislature as Constitutional Amendment Concurrent Resolution 16 (CACR 16) on November 6, 2017. On February 22, 2018, the New Hampshire House of Representatives voted 235 to 96, with 37 members absent, to pass the amendment. On May 2, 2018, the New Hampshire Senate voted 15 to nine to pass CACR 16.

Text of measure

Ballot title

The ballot title was as follows:[1]

“

Are you in favor of amending the first part of the constitution by inserting after article 2-a new article to read as follows:

[Art.] 2-b. [Right to Privacy.] An individual's right to live free from governmental intrusion in private or personal information is natural, essential, and inherent.[2]

”

Constitutional changes

See also: Article 2 of New Hampshire Constitution

The measure added an Article 2-b to the New Hampshire Constitution. The following text was added:[1]

Article 2-b. Right to Privacy.

An individual's right to live free from governmental intrusion in private or personal information is natural, essential, and inherent.[2]

Readability score

See also: Ballot measure readability scores, 2018
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 state legislature wrote the ballot language for this measure.


The FKGL for the ballot title is grade level 10, and the FRE is 44. The word count for the ballot title is 47, and the estimated reading time is 12 seconds.

In 2018, for the 167 statewide measures on the ballot, the average ballot title or question was written at a level appropriate for those with between 19 and 20 years of U.S. formal education (graduate school-level of education), according to the FKGL formula. Read Ballotpedia's entire 2018 ballot language readability report here.

Support

Rep. Neal Kurk (R-Hillsborough 2) and Rep. Robert Cushing (D-Rockingham 21) sponsored the amendment in the New Hampshire General Court.[3]

Opposition

Opponents

  • Cornerstone Action PAC[4]

Arguments

  • Cornerstone Action PAC said, "Privacy matters. So does the right to life. Don’t let a ballot question trick you into picking

the former over the latter. If we are to have a right to privacy explicitly recognized in the New Hampshire constitution, it must be abortion neutral. Say no to Question 2."[5]

Campaign finance

See also: Campaign finance requirements for New Hampshire ballot measures
Total campaign contributions:
Support: $0.00
Opposition: $0.00

No ballot question committees registered to support or oppose the bond measure.[6]

Media editorials

Support

Ballotpedia had not identified any media editorial boards in support of the ballot measure. If you are aware of an editorial, please send an email with a link to editor@ballotpedia.org.

Opposition

  • The Kenne Sentinel: "It’s a concept we think almost anyone would find appealing. Who doesn’t want protection from government spying or the release of personal information? But the devil is in the details, and with Question 2, there are none. There’s no caveat giving police the right to a search warrant, nor protecting the public’s right to know. There’s no real way of knowing how a court would interpret the terms “essential” or “inherent.”... Voters should say no to Question 2."[7]

Background

Referred amendments on the ballot

From 1996 through 2016, the state legislature referred 9 constitutional amendments to the ballot. Voters approved three and rejected six of the referred amendments. All of the amendments were referred to the ballot for general elections during even-numbered election years. The average number of amendments appearing on the general election ballot was less than one. The approval rate of referred amendments at the ballot box was 33.3 percent during the 20-year period from 1996 through 2016. The rejection rate was 66.67 percent.

Legislatively-referred constitutional amendments, 1996-2016
Total number Approved Percent approved Defeated Percent defeated Annual average Annual median Annual minimum Annual maximum
9 3 33.33% 9 66.67% 0.41 1.00 0 2

Path to the ballot

See also: Amending the New Hampshire Constitution

In New Hampshire, a constitutional amendment must be passed by a 60 percent vote in each house of the New Hampshire General Court during one legislative session.

The constitutional amendment was introduced into the state legislature as Constitutional Amendment Concurrent Resolution 16 (CACR 16) on November 6, 2017.

On February 22, 2018, the New Hampshire House of Representatives voted 235 to 96, with 37 members absent, to pass the amendment.[3] Note: The partisan vote in the state House is not available.

On May 2, 2018, the New Hampshire Senate voted 15 to nine to pass CACR 16.[3] Note: The partisan vote in the state Senate is not available.

As the CACR 15 was approved in both chambers of the New Hampshire General Court, the measure was referred to the ballot for the election on November 6, 2018.

How to cast a vote

See also: Voting in New Hampshire

Poll times

In New Hampshire, polling place hours of operation vary. According to state law, polling places must be open between 11:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Localities may set their own polling hours as long as they are open during those hours prescribed by state law.[8] To search for the hours your polling place is open, click here.

Registration requirements

To register to vote in New Hampshire, each applicant must be a citizen of the United States, an inhabitant of New Hampshire, and at least 18 years old by the next election. Individuals may register to vote at the local clerk's office, with the community's supervisors of the checklist or registrar of voters, or at the polling place on the day of the election. Applicants must fill out a voter registration form and either show proof of identity, residence, and citizenship or sign an affidavit witnessed by an election official.[9][10] Absentee registration is allowed for those who are “unable to register in person because of physical disability, religious beliefs, military service, or because of temporary absence.” Absentee registration requires mailing a voter registration form and witnessed absentee voter registration affidavit to the local clerk.[9]

Automatic registration

New Hampshire does not practice automatic voter registration.

Online registration

See also: Online voter registration

New Hampshire does not permit online voter registration.

Same-day registration

New Hampshire allows same-day voter registration.

Residency requirements

In New Hampshire, citizens can register to vote the day they move to the state.[9]

Verification of citizenship

See also: Laws permitting noncitizens to vote in the United States

New Hampshire requires prospective voters to either provide proof of citizenship or sign an affidavit in order to register to vote.

Verifying your registration

The New Hampshire Secretary of State’s office allows residents to check their voter registration status online by visiting this website.

Voter ID requirements

New Hampshire requires voters to present photo identification while voting.[11]

The following list of accepted ID was current as of November 2019. Click here for the New Hampshire Secretary of State page on accepted ID to ensure you have the most current information.

  • Driver's license issued by any state or the federal government
  • Photo ID card issued by the motor vehicles division, department, agency, or office of any other state
  • United States armed services identification card
  • United States passport or passcard
  • Valid student identification card issued by a college, university, or career school in New Hampshire
  • Valid student ID from a public high school in New Hampshire
  • Valid student ID from a nonpublic high school in New Hampshire

Additionally, a poll worker may verify the voter’s identity. If anyone authorized to challenge a voter objects to the poll worker’s verification, the voter would have to complete a challenged voter affidavit.[11]

Voters without proper photo identification can complete a challenged voter affidavit. A poll worker will take a photo of the voter and attach it to the affidavit. The voter may then cast a regular ballot. If the voter objects to being photographed for religious reasons, he or she can complete an affidavit of religious exemption, which will be attached to the challenged voter affidavit.[11]

Background

As of December 2019, 34 states enforced (or were scheduled to begin enforcing) voter identification requirements. A total of 19 states required voters to present photo identification at the polls; the remainder accepted other forms of identification. Valid forms of identification differ by state. Commonly accepted forms of ID include driver's licenses, state-issued identification cards, and military identification cards.[12][13]


See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 New Hampshire General Court, "Constitutional Amendment Concurrent Resolution 16," accessed February 23, 2018
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source. Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "quotedisclaimer" defined multiple times with different content
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 New Hampshire General Court, "CACR 16 Overview," accessed February 23, 2018
  4. ↑ Cornerstone Action PAC, "Home," accessed November 15, 2018
  5. ↑ Cornerstone Action PAC, "Cornerstone Advises 'No' on Question 2," accessed November 15, 2018
  6. ↑ New Hampshire Secretary of State, "Campaign Finance," accessed September 16, 2018
  7. ↑ The Kenne Sentinel, "Ballot questions: Voters should say 'yes' to Question 1, 'no' to Question 2," October 28, 2018
  8. ↑ New Hampshire Secretary of State, “New Hampshire Election Laws - Chapter 659,” accessed October 17, 2019
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 New Hampshire Secretary of State, “How to Register to Vote,” accessed October 3, 2019
  10. ↑ New Hampshire Secretary of State, “Registering to Vote in New Hampshire,” November 7, 2018
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 New Hampshire Secretary of State, "Voter Identification Law," accessed October 4, 2019
  12. ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "Voter Identification Requirements|Voter ID Laws," June 5, 2017
  13. ↑ The Washington Post, "Do I need an ID to vote? A look at the laws in all 50 states," October 27, 2014
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