Mississippi
Freshmen Rep. Jeramey Anderson, who represents District 110 in the Mississippi Legislature, rallied his troops Saturday morning to garner signatures for a petition to support Initiative Measure No. 42, which would more adequately fund the state’s free public school system.
With the help of the Better Schools, Better Jobs Campaign, Initiative Measure 42 is aiming to fully fund the Mississippi Adequate Education Program. Similar signup drives are being held in other parts of the state.
Workers stood with placards from 9 a.m. until noon in front of the Scruggs Building, calling attention to the signup drive being conducted on the front porch and inside the facility.
Ballotpedia’s final analysis on donations to all 2011 statewide ballot measure campaigns has been released; the donations add up $85 million.
The report reveals some interesting information like the fact that the state with the highest contributions from all campaign sides from all ballot measures was in Ohio. The least amount of contributions was in Arkansas.
You can also find an overview of the contributions from supporters & opponents, a ranking of ballot measures from the most to the least contributions, and the ranking of political topic contributions where “labor” shows the most donations in Ohio on Issue 2.
Mississippi voters Tuesday defeated a ballot initiative that would’ve declared life begins at conception, a proposal that supporters sought in the Bible Belt state as a way to prompt a legal challenge to abortion rights nationwide. The so-called “personhood” initiative was rejected by more than 55 percent of voters, falling far short of the threshold needed for it to be enacted. If it had passed, it was virtually assured of drawing legal challenges because it conflicts with the Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that established a legal right to abortion. Supporters of the initiative wanted to provoke a lawsuit to challenge the landmark ruling.
Mississippi voters will wade through many other offices and questions in the Nov. 8 general election before they reach constitutional initiative No. 27, which asks them whether the state should require voters to show a government-issued photo to prove their identity. A bit of irony comes into play here: some voters who say yes to the question will not be allowed to vote in the next election unless they have a photo ID.
Voters will decide the fate of three proposed amendments to Mississippi’s constitution in just over two weeks in the General Election. We’ve learned it won’t be as simple as which side gets the most votes. Each needs 40 percent of all votes cast to become law. Initiative 26 is the so-called personhood proposal. It defines life at the moment of conception. Supporters say it will ban abortion in the state. Opponents say it will limit healthcare for some women.
The Mississippi Supreme Court on Thursday cleared the way for an amendment to the state constitution granting “personhood” to fetuses to go to voters in November though the court did not render a position on the measure’s constitutionality, should it pass. “Our law provides that this court cannot interfere with the legislative act of the people, just as this court cannot interfere with the attempt of the Legislature to pass a law,” Associate Justice Randy G. Pierce said in the 7-2 majority opinion.
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.
In keeping with state law, the Mississippi Secretary of State’s office will be holding a series of publichearings throughout the state regarding initiatives scheduled to be on the Nov. 8 general election ballot.
According to the Daily Journal:
Pamela Weaver, spokeswoman for the secretary of state’s office, says statements from all nine hearings will be available online at the secretary of state’s website and will be published in an educational booklet.
Clarion Ledger Editorial Director David Hampton argues in a recent editorial, ”It would be pretty easy to stand in front of a Wal-Mart and gather signatures on a petition to repeal or lower property taxes, or any taxes for that matter, in just about any city in Mississippi.” Clearly Hampton has never tried it before: the fact is that most attempts to qualify for the ballot fail for lack of signatures.
Voters will soon decide if they must prove who they are at the polls and if the state can take your private property. Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann delivered the voter identification and eminent domain initiatives to the Clerk of the House and Secretary of the Senate on the first day of the legislative session.
Last week Citizens in Charge Foundation - a partner organization to Citizens in Charge - sent a letter to Secretaries of State and Attorneys General in 12 states asking them to stop enforcing unconstitutional restrictions on ballot initiative rights. In light of recent legal action in which Kansas officials agreed with petition advocates that the state’s law against petition circulators from other states was unconstitutional, Foundation President Paul Jacob asked officials to “do the right thing” and stop enforcing similar
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.
Mississippi secretary of state, Delbert Hosemann, confirms that an eminent domain initiative will appear on the November 2011 ballot. Hosemann says his office verified that supporters of the measure gathered signatures from 119,692 registered voters.
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.