Pro & Con: Amendment 3 Has Missouri Voters Back To The Drawing Board On Legislative Districts

[Sherman A1]

Two years ago, when the Clean Missouri campaign asked Missouri voters if they wanted an overhaul of the state’s legislative redistricting system, plus some new limits on campaign finance and lobbyist gifts, the answer was a clear yes. A strong majority voted in favor of Amendment 1 on Nov. 6, 2018, and proponents of the amendment hailed its passage as a victory for political accountability.

But now the fate of the recently adopted redistricting system — which includes a nonpartisan state demographer and new criteria prioritizing “competitiveness” and “partisan fairness” — is in doubt. Some Missouri lawmakers are asking voters to reconsider and pushing for the passage of Amendment 3 this fall.

While reading the ballot language, voters may experience a sense of déjà vu, as proposed changes to two arguably distinct issues — political money and political representation — are again combined in one ballot issue. Also, the first two of Amendment 3’s three sections appear to closely piggyback on some of what Clean Missouri already sought to do, including “ban gifts from paid lobbyists to legislators and their employees” and “reduce legislative campaign contribution limits.”

The third section is the meat of the issue, where Amendment 3 asks voters to “change the redistricting process voters approved in 2018 [by] transferring responsibility for drawing state legislative districts from the Nonpartisan State Demographer to Governor-appointed bipartisan commissions [and] modifying and reordering the redistricting criteria.”

https://news.stlpublicradio.org/show/st-louis-on-the-air/2020-10-20/pro-con-amendment-3-has-missouri-voters-back-to-the-drawing-board-on-legislative-districts

[jonstl08]

1. Vote NO

Us citizens of Missouri already voted for this. This is another attempt at the GOP not agreeing with the will of the peoples vote. Not the first time they overturned what the voters wanted. Voters voted against concealed weapons and Puppy Mills. The GOP legislature overrode those votes and passed bills for these two items.

We stopped them when then passed Right to Work. Citizens rose up in oppostion forcing a vote to overturn the legislature vote and overrode. But they will try again because people still vote the GOP into power.

Vote for Galloway Governor and the Dems for state reps and Senate. Only way to change things.

[Sherman A1]

2. Agreed

The republicans in the Missouri State House, just can't take No for an answer.

[lastlib]

3. Agreed! It has really pissed me off how....

...these GOPee f*ckstains totally DISREGARD the vote of the people, and go ahead and do what they damn well please! Time to STOP!

I'd like to see a constitutional amendment enacted to prevent the legislature from altering ANY voter initiative for a period of at least five years. But they would probly reverse that, too.

I F*cking Hate Republikans!

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