South Dakota Amendment 5, Constitutional Convention Members Measure (1916)

South Dakota Amendment 5
Election date November 7, 1916
Topic State constitutional conventions
Status Defeated
Type Legislatively referred constitutional amendment	Origin State legislature

South Dakota Amendment 5 was on the ballot as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment in South Dakota on November 7, 1916. It was defeated.

A "yes" vote supported requiring the 1917 legislature to call a constitutional convention to revise the state constitution and reducing the number of convention members to match the number of state senators instead of state representatives.

A "no" vote opposed requiring the 1917 legislature to call a constitutional convention to revise the state constitution and reducing the number of convention members to match the number of state senators instead of state representatives.

Election results

South Dakota Amendment 5
Result		Votes	Percentage
Yes		35,377	38.53%
No		56,432	61.47%

Results are officially certified.

Source

Text of measure

Ballot title

The ballot title for Amendment 5 was as follows:

“

To require the fifteenth legislative assembly, which meets in January, 1917, to provide by law for calling and holding a constitutional convention to revise the state constitution. Under the present constitution a constitutional convention, if called, shall be composed of the same number of members as there are representatives in the state house of representatives, while under the proposed amendment the constitutional convention shall have only as many members as there are senators in the state house. If this amendment is adopted it will accomplish two things, therefore: first, require the legislature to call a constitutional convention, as above stated; and, second, fix the number of members in such convention, and in future constitutional conventions, at the number of senators there are in the state legislature.

”

Path to the ballot

See also: Amending the South Dakota Constitution

A simple majority vote is required during one legislative session for the South Dakota State Legislature to place a constitutional amendment on the ballot. That amounts to a minimum of 36 votes in the South Dakota House of Representatives and 18 votes in the South Dakota State Senate, assuming no vacancies. Amendments do not require the governor's signature to be referred to the ballot.

See also

1916 Measures

• 1916 Measures
• State constitutional conventions on the ballot
• 1916 legislative sessions

South Dakota

• South Dakota ballot measures
• South Dakota ballot measure laws

News and analysis

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

External links

• South Dakota Political Almanac, 1890-2012 Ballot Measure Results