Clarion Ledger
By the time Mississippians are scheduled to vote on three ballot initiatives in the Nov. 8 general election, Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann is hoping they are well informed about them. That’s the goal behind a series of public hearings Hosemann’s office will be conducting this month, starting Thursday, on eminent domain, abortion or the definition of person, and voter identification.
The battle over an initiative that seeks to define life as beginning at conception now will head to the Mississippi Supreme Court. On Tuesday, Hinds County Circuit Judge Malcolm Harrison denied a motion to block the “Personhood Initiative” from being placed on the 2011 ballot.
A Hinds County judge has ruled in favor of allowing an anti-abortion initiative on Mississippi’s 2011 ballot. “(The initiative) has received more than the required amount of signatures to be placed on the ballot and the Constitution recognizes the right of citizens to amend their Constitution,” Judge Malcolm Harrison ruled in an order signed today.
A Hinds County Circuit judge was asked today to stop Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann from presenting to the Legislature a ballot initiative seeking to define life as beginning at conception. Circuit Judge Malcolm Harrison took the motion under advisement. He said he would rule at a later date.
An election that would allow Mississippi voters to decide whether they should show identification at the polls appears unlikely for at least another two years. It may not happen at all, depending on whether supporters can navigate the complicated process of getting an initiative on a ballot.
Voters gave the Flowood business community a collective thumbs up, overwhelmingly approving a ballot measure granting resort status to the city so restaurants can begin selling liquor and wine by the glass. The measure passed 1,172 to 383.
Since 1993, Mississippians have had the option of taking power away from the Legislature and changing the state constitution as they deem appropriate when the Legislature refuses to act.