Also on the Ballot: Initiatives that Advance (and Undercut) Democracy

Ballot initiative this year could change how elections across the country look in the future

Written by Cecily Hines and Miles Rapoport

With the interest in this year’s national elections so intense, and the volume so high, almost all eyes are on the race for President, partisan control of the Senate, and increasingly whether we can get through November 3rd and the weeks afterward with our democracy intact.

But largely out of the spotlight of national media attention, elections are taking place at the state level that will determine control of state legislatures prior to the next redistricting. In addition, there are a number of election-related ballot initiatives designed to encourage and increase the ability for people to vote, and a smaller number designed to roll it back. And these initiatives can shape how elections take place for the future.

As an example, from 2018, one of the most consequential ballot initiatives occurred in Florida, where the electorate overwhelmingly (64%) approved returning the right to vote to people with felony convictions who had completed their sentences of incarceration, probation and parole. If fully implemented, Question 4 would have restored voting rights to about 1.4 million people and changed the voting dynamics in that key state forever.

But that success was immediately met with resistance when the Florida legislature passed a law requiring those newly re-enfranchised citizens to be current on all fines, fees and restitution before registering to vote — cutting down by almost two thirds the number of people whose rights were restored. A federal district court struck down that requirement as a poll tax, but it was reversed on appeal by the 11th Circuit, with the argument that payment of all fines and fees are a component of the sentence that must be cleared. In August of this year, the U.S Supreme Court allowed this modern-day poll tax to stand, disenfranchising hundreds of thousands of citizens.

Coming forward to this November, there are a number of democracy-focused initiatives across the country. The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) and Ballotpedia are excellent resources for up-to-date information on these grassroots efforts, along with the Ballot Initiative Strategy Center (BISC), which focuses its efforts on ballot initiatives that impact social justice and are community-driven.

BISC sees a trend in voting rights and election reform efforts, with 26 ballot initiatives in 20 states on issues from redistricting to term limits to ranked choice voting. Corrine Rivera Fowler, Policy and Legal Advocacy Director for BISC, says “the ballot initiative tool is the one that engages communities that are most directly impacted in the political process, to create systemic social change when our legislators fail to act.” In a recent BISC survey, more than 2/3 of voters of color viewed ballot initiatives as “an opportunity to pass policies that help people like me” and a “good way for me to make my voice heard in the political process.”

Some of the initiatives to watch are:

*Alaska is moving to replace its political party primaries with an open primary system that includes ranked choice voting and requires additional campaign finance disclosures.

*Massachusetts also has a ballot initiative this year to adopt ranked choice voting for all statewide and congressional elections. (See ***). Adoption of Question 2 would make Massachusetts the second state, after Maine, to use ranked choice voting.

*California will be voting to continue the trend toward restoring voting rights to all individuals released from prison, with an initiative to expand its law to include those on parole, who are currently excluded.

*Regarding redistricting, Virginia has a proposal to adopt a nonpartisan citizen-led redistricting commission to prevent the kind of extreme partisan gerrymandering the state saw after the 2010 Tea Party wave.

*Cities are seeing significant ballot initiatives as well. This year the citizens of San Francisco will decide whether 16 year-olds will be allowed to vote in municipal elections. This measure narrowly failed in 2016, but supporters like Vote 16 SF are feeling optimistic that it will pass this time around.

*Florida remains active on the initiative front this year with three voting-related amendments on the November ballot. One changes Florida’s primaries to the ‘top two’ system, which allows all voters to participate, with the top two moving on to the general election.

The other two Florida amendments clearly make the point that initiatives can be used to roll back voting participation as well as expand it. One requires that all constitutional amendments must be approved by voters in two elections rather than one (a similar measure is on the ballot in Arkansas). The second would require that only U.S. citizens 18 years of age who are permanent residents of Florida and registered to vote, may vote in a Florida election. While this wording seems redundant, and likely will not produce dramatic change, it is viewed by voting rights advocates as laying the groundwork for further attacks on marginalized communities.

*Missouri’s legislature is seeking to reverse the results of a successful initiative from 2018 that created a nonpartisan redistricting commission passed by 62% of voters in 2018. It has placed a question on the November ballot that will abolish the commission. This is an example, as in Florida, that even when a proposal passes the electorate overwhelmingly, the will of the people can be thwarted.

Ballot initiatives, at their best, are grass-roots driven and are examples of true democracy in action. In addition, ballot initiatives are an effective way to create social change when legislators who are beholden to large donors refuse to act. They can also be measures that bring people to the polls, sometimes more so than specific candidates. The ballot measures this year will make a difference in how we run elections in the future and are well worth watching.

About the Authors

Miles Rapoport

Miles Rapoport, a longtime organizer, policy advocate, and elected official, brings to the Ash Center four decades of experience working to strengthen democracy and democratic institutions in the United States. Prior to his appointment to the Ash Center, Rapoport was most recently president of the independent grassroots organization Common Cause. For 13 years, he headed the public policy center Demos.

Rapoport previously served as Connecticut’s Secretary of the State and a state legislator for ten years in Hartford. He has written, spoken, and organized widely on issues of American democracy. He was a member of the Harvard class of 1971.

Cecily Hines

Cecily Hines currently serves as Senior Program Advisor to the Senior Practice Fellowship in American Democracy at the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation, Harvard Kennedy School. She is also a retired senior executive and general counsel with over 20 years of experience, primarily in the global medical device industry.

She was the first chief executive hired by Minneapolis Parks Foundation where she led the organization from an unknown entity to a highly respected organization, with an impressive board of directors and a reputation for leadership in its “next generation of parks” initiative.

Ms. Hines has served on numerous nonprofit and private boards, and as board chair of several of them.

She earned her J.D. degree from Duke University “with distinction”, her M.P.A. from New York University, and her B.A. from Smith College.