Kansas Constitution: Difference between revisions

Kansas Constitution
Articles
	Ordinance • Preamble • Bill of Rights; 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15

Kansas Constitution
Articles
	Ordinance • Preamble • Bill of Rights; 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 • 11 • 12 • 13 • 14 • 15

Latest revision as of 15:22, 26 December 2023

The Kansas Constitution is the state constitution of Kansas.

The current and first Kansas Constitution was adopted by voters on October 4, 1859.
The Kansas Constitution was originally known as the "Wyandotte Constitution."
The current state constitution has a Preamble, a Bill of Rights, and 15 articles.
The current Kansas Constitution has been amended 95 times.^[1]
Voters last approved a new amendment to the Kansas Constitution on November 8, 2022, when voters approved Amendment 2.

Kansas does not feature a process for initiated constitutional amendments. The Kansas Constitution can only be amended via a legislatively referred constitutional amendment or by a constitutional convention.

A state constitution is the fundamental document that outlines a state's framework for governance, including the powers, structure, and limitations of the state government, individual and civil rights, and other matters.

Background

Kansas became the 34th state on January 29, 1861. The state has had one constitution from statehood. It was adopted by a vote of 10,421 to 5,530 on October 4, 1859. The Kansas Constitution was originally known as the "Wyandotte Constitution."^[2]

In 1879 and 1891, the state legislature referred two constitutional convention questions to statewide ballots. Both were defeated. Since 1892, the state legislature has not met the vote requirements to place a constitutional convention question on the ballot although over 20 convention questions were proposed.^[2]

Women's suffrage was not addressed in the original constitution even though it was proposed at the Wyandotte Convention. It was proposed in every succeeding state legislative session. In 1867, it met the legislative vote requirement to be put on the ballot but was defeated by 68.65% of voters. The state legislature put it on the ballot again in 1894, but it was defeated by 57.73% of voters. It was approved in 1912 by a vote of 52.40% to 47.60%.^[2]

Preamble

See also: Preamble, Kansas Constitution and Preambles to state constitutions

The preamble to the Kansas Constitution states:

We, the people of Kansas, grateful to Almighty God for our civil and religious privileges, in order to insure the full enjoyment of our rights as American citizens, do ordain and establish this constitution of the state of Kansas, with the following boundaries, to wit: Beginning at a point on the western boundary of the state of Missouri, where the thirty-seventh parallel of north latitude crosses the same; thence running west on said parallel to the twenty-fifth meridian of longitude west from Washington; thence north on said meridian to the fortieth parallel of north latitude; thence east on said parallel to the western boundary of the state of Missouri; thence south with the western boundary of said state to the place of beginning.^[3]

Bill of Rights

See also: Bill of Rights, Kansas Constitution

The "Bill of Rights" of the Kansas Constitution comes between the Preamble and Article 1. It prescribes the rights of the citizens and sets up Kansas as a free state.^[3]^[4]

Click here to read the Bill of Rights of the Kansas Constitution.