Florida Amendment 4, Require Constitutional Amendments to be Passed Twice Initiative (2020)
Florida Amendment 4 | |
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Election date November 3, 2020 | |
Topic Direct democracy measures | |
Status Defeated | |
Type Constitutional amendment | Origin Citizens |
Florida Amendment 4, the Require Constitutional Amendments to be Passed Twice Initiative, was on the ballot in Florida as an initiated constitutional amendment on November 3, 2020. It was defeated.
A "yes" vote supported requiring voter-approved constitutional amendments to be approved by voters at a second general election to become effective. |
A "no" vote opposed requiring voter-approved constitutional amendments to be approved by voters at a second general election to become effective. |
Election results
Florida Amendment 4 |
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Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
Yes | 4,853,402 | 47.53% | ||
5,356,792 | 52.47% |
Overview
What would Amendment 4 have changed about constitutional amendments in Florida?
- See also: Constitutional changes
Amendment 4 was designed to require constitutional amendments to be approved by voters at two successive general elections to become effective. Going into the election, in Florida, if voters approve an amendment at one general election, it becomes part of the constitution.[1]
In Florida, constitutional amendments require a 60% supermajority vote to become effective. This requirement was added to the constitution in 2006. The supermajority requirement would have applied to both elections under Amendment 4.[1]
Who was behind the campaigns surrounding Amendment 4?
- See also: Support, Opposition, and Campaign finance
Keep Our Constitution Clean PC led the campaign in support of Amendment 4. The committee raised $9.01 million, all of which was given by the non-profit group Keep Our Constitution Clean, Inc. Jason Zimmerman, a lawyer for Keep Our Constitution Clean PC said, "By doing pass-it-twice, we think we can reduce the amount of ... whimsical constitutional amendments. [In Florida], there have been more than 140 constitutional amendments [since the 1960s]. The United States Constitution, which has been around since the 1700s, has been amended 27 times."[2]
Opponents of Amendment 4 included the ACLU of Florida and the Florida League of Women Voters. The ACLU of Florida said, "[Amendment 4], disingenuously and misleadingly titled 'Voter Approval of Constitutional Amendments,' is a cynical political effort to obstruct voters’ ability to pass future constitutional amendments, even those with support from a supermajority of voters. This ballot initiative disregards the will of the people and renders their voices mute on the very issues they care about most." The Committee to Advance Constitutional Values registered to oppose Amendments 1, 3, and 4 on the 2020 ballot. The committee was funded mainly by the ACLU and the ACLU of Florida. The committee raised $1.92 million and spent $1.54 million. Since the committee registered to oppose three measures, it is not possible to distinguish between funds spent on each individual measure.
What was the election process for constitutional amendments in Florida as of 2020?
- See also: State processes for initiated constitutional amendments and Constitutional amendment statistics 2006-2018
As of 2020, Florida was one of 18 states that require voters to approve a constitutional amendment at a single election. One state—Nevada—requires voter approval of citizen-initiated constitutional amendments at two successive elections. Since the pass-it-twice requirement in Nevada was created in 1962, there have been 14 citizen-initiated constitutional amendments that passed at the first election and appeared on the ballot again at the next election. Of the 14 measures, 12 were passed at their second elections (85.7%) and two failed (14.3%).
Additionally, in every U.S. state except Delaware, constitutional amendments passed by the state's legislature must be referred to and approved by voters to become effective. Unlike the proposed change under Florida Amendment 4, the process in Nevada does not require voter approval of legislative referrals at more than one election.
The Florida constitution, adopted in 1968, was amended 140 times (including amendments via citizen initiative and via the legislature) as of the November 2018 election. Before the 60% supermajority vote requirement for constitutional amendments was adopted in 2006, the average number of amendments adopted was between 5 and 6 per election cycle. After 2006, the average was between 4 and 5 per election cycle.[3]
Were there other measures like this on the 2020 ballot?
- See also Related measures
A similar amendment was on the 2020 ballot for voters in North Dakota, which was designed to require initiated constitutional amendments passed by voters to be submitted to the legislature for approval or approved by voters at two consecutive general elections.
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title was as follows:[4]
“ | Voter Approval of Constitutional Amendments.[5] | ” |
Ballot summary
The ballot summary was as follows:[4]
“ | Requires all proposed amendments or revisions to the state constitution to be approved by the voters in two elections, instead of one, in order to take effect. The proposal applies the current thresholds for passage to each of the two elections.[5] | ” |
Fiscal impact statement
The fiscal impact statement for the amendment appeared on the ballot as follows:[6]
“ | It is probable that the proposed amendment will result in additional state and local government costs to conduct elections in Florida. Overall, these costs will vary from election cycle to election cycle depending on the unique circumstances of each ballot and cannot be estimated at this time. The key factors determining cost include the number of amendments appearing for the second time on each ballot and the length of those amendments. Since the maximum state cost is likely less than $1 million per cycle but the impact cannot be discretely quantified, the change to the state’s budget is unknown. Similarly, the economic impact cannot be modelled, although the spending increase is expected to be below the threshold that would produce a statewide economic impact. Because there are no revenues linked to voting in Florida, there will be no impact on government taxes or fees.
THE FINANCIAL IMPACT OF THIS AMENDMENT CANNOT BE DETERMINED DUE TO AMBIGUITIES AND UNCERTAINTIES SURROUNDING THE AMENDMENT’S IMPACT.[5] |
” |
Constitutional changes
- See also: Article XI, Florida Constitution
The measure Sections 5 and 7 of Article XI of the Florida Constitution. The following underlined text would have been added.
SECTION 5. Amendment or revision election.— (a) A proposed amendment to or revision of this constitution, or any part of it, shall be submitted to the electors at the next general election held more than ninety days after the joint resolution or report of revision commission, constitutional convention or taxation and budget reform commission proposing it is filed with the custodian of state records, unless, pursuant to law enacted by the affirmative vote of three-fourths of the membership of each house of the legislature and limited to a single amendment or revision, it is submitted at an earlier special election held more than ninety days after such filing. If the proposed amendment or revision is approved as provided in subsection (e), it shall be submitted to the electors a second time at the next general election occurring at least ten weeks after the election in which the proposed amendment or revision is initially approved. (b) A proposed amendment or revision of this constitution, or any part of it, by initiative shall be submitted to the electors at the general election provided the initiative petition is filed with the custodian of state records no later than February 1 of the year in which the general election is held. If the proposed amendment or revision is approved as provided in subsection (e), it shall be submitted to the electors a second time at the next general election. (c) The legislature shall provide by general law, prior to the holding of an election pursuant to this section, for the provision of a statement to the public regarding the probable financial impact of any amendment proposed by initiative pursuant to section 3.[5] |
Readability score
- See also: Ballot measure readability scores, 2020
Using the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL and Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) formulas, Ballotpedia scored the readability of the ballot title and summary for this measure. Readability scores are designed to indicate the reading difficulty of text. The Flesch-Kincaid formulas account for the number of words, syllables, and sentences in a text; they do not account for the difficulty of the ideas in the text. The initiative proponents wrote the ballot language for this measure.
|
Support
Keep Our Constitution Clean PC led the campaign in support of the initiative.[4]
Arguments
Opposition
Opponents
Political Parties
Organizations
- ACLU of Florida
- Democracy for America
- League of Women Voters of Florida
Arguments
Media editorials
Support
Ballotpedia did not identify media editorials supporting Amendment 4. If you are aware of one, please send an email with a link to editor@ballotpedia.org.
Opposition
Polls
Poll results for the measure are detailed below.[7]
Double Election Requirement for Constitutional Amendments Initiative | |||||||||||||||||||
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Poll | Support | Oppose | Unsure | Margin of error | Sample size | ||||||||||||||
University of North Florida poll 10/1/20 - 10/4/20 | 41.0% | 52.0% | 7.0% | +/-1.8 | 2,943 | ||||||||||||||
St. Pete Polls 10/7/19 - 10/10/19 | 49.2% | 29.7% | 21.1% | +/-1.7 | 3,283 | ||||||||||||||
AVERAGES | 45.1% | 40.85% | 14.05% | +/-1.75 | 3,113 | ||||||||||||||
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org. |
Campaign finance
One committee registered to support Amendment 4: Keep Our Constitution Clean PC. The committee reported $165,500 in cash contributions and $8.84 million in in-kind contributions, all from Keep Our Constitution Clean, Inc. The committee reported 160,131.36 in cash expenditures.
Keep Our Constitution Clean PC reported in-kind contributions from Keep Our Constitution Clean, Inc. for signature gathering totaling $8.8 million. The total cost per required signature (CPRS) for Amendment 4 was $11.48.
The Committee to Advance Constitutional Values registered to oppose Amendments 1, 3, and 4 on the 2020 ballot. The committee was funded mainly by the ACLU and the ACLU of Florida. The committee raised $1.92 million and spent $1.54 million. Since the committee registered to oppose three measures, it is not possible to distinguish between funds spent on each individual measure.
Cash Contributions | In-Kind Contributions | Total Contributions | Cash Expenditures | Total Expenditures | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Support | $165,500.00 | $8,844,646.76 | $9,010,146.76 | $160,230.36 | $9,004,877.12 |
Oppose | $1,448,315.33 | $469,786.71 | $1,918,102.04 | $1,544,530.42 | $2,014,317.13 |
Support
Committees in support of Amendment 4 | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Committee | Cash Contributions | In-Kind Contributions | Total Contributions | Cash Expenditures | Total Expenditures |
Keep Our Constitution Clean PC | $165,500.00 | $8,844,646.76 | $9,010,146.76 | $160,230.36 | $9,004,877.12 |
Total | $165,500.00 | $8,844,646.76 | $9,010,146.76 | $160,230.36 | $9,004,877.12 |
Top donors
Keep Our Constitution Clean, Inc. provided 100% of the contributions to the support campaign.
Donor | Cash Contributions | In-Kind Contributions | Total Contributions |
---|---|---|---|
Keep Our Constitution Clean, Inc. | $165,500.00 | $8,844,646.76 | $9,010,146.76 |
Opposition
Committees in opposition to Amendment 4 | |||||
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Committee | Cash Contributions | In-Kind Contributions | Total Contributions | Cash Expenditures | Total Expenditures |
Committee to Advance Constitutional Values | $1,448,315.33 | $469,786.71 | $1,918,102.04 | $1,544,530.42 | $2,014,317.13 |
Total | $1,448,315.33 | $469,786.71 | $1,918,102.04 | $1,544,530.42 | $2,014,317.13 |
Top donors
Donor | Cash Contributions | In-Kind Contributions | Total Contributions |
---|---|---|---|
ACLU | $1,415,415.00 | $112,932.54 | $1,528,347.54 |
ACLU of Forida | $35,000.00 | $356,854.17 | $391,854.17 |
Fairness Maryland, Inc | $12,500.00 | $0.00 | $12,500.00 |
Methodology
To read Ballotpedia's methodology for covering ballot measure campaign finance information, click here.
Background
State processes for initiated constitutional amendments
A total of 18 states have a process for citizen-initiated constitutional amendments. In 15 of those states, including Florida, citizens collect signatures for an initiative petition, and if the petition meets all requirements and is certified, it will appear on the ballot for a statewide vote. If voters approve the amendment, it becomes part of the constitution. In Florida, constitutional amendments require a 60% supermajority vote to become effective. This requirement was added to the constitution in 2006.
Colorado is the only other state that requires a supermajority vote to pass initiated constitutional amendments. The state requires a 55% supermajority vote. This requirement was added to the Colorado Constitution in 2016.
Two states, Mississippi and Massachusetts, have an indirect process for initiated constitutional amendments. Indirect initiated constitutional amendments do not go immediately to the ballot after a successful petition drive, rather, they are presented to the state legislature first.
Process in Nevada
Nevada is the only state where initiated constitutional amendments must be approved at two consecutive elections. This does not apply to legislatively referred constitutional amendments, which must be approved twice by the legislature (with a majority vote) but only once by the state’s voters. Since the pass-it-twice requirement was created in 1962, there have been 14 citizen-initiated constitutional amendments that passed at the first election and appeared on the ballot again at the next election. Of the 14 measures, 12 were passed at their second elections (85.7%) and two failed (14.3%).
Question 6, passed in 2018, required approval again in 2020 to become effective.
Amendments to the Florida Constitution
The current (and sixth) Florida Constitution was adopted on November 5, 1968.[3] The current constitution has been amended 140 times.[8] The most recent amendments to the Florida Constitution, of which there were 11, were approved by voters in 2018. Of the 11 amendments to Florida's constitution in 2018, seven were referred to the ballot by the Florida Constitution Revision Commission, two were referred by the legislature, and two were initiated by citizens.
Constitutional amendment statistics 2006-2019
Among states with a process for citizen-initiated constitutional amendments, Florida featured the most proposed constitutional amendments on the ballot from 2006 through 2019, with a total of 50. Florida voters approved 66% of the proposed amendments (33 of 50). States with initiated amendments featured an average of 21 proposed constitutional changes, of which an average of around 13 were approved.
Among all 50 states, Louisiana (which does not have an initiative process) featured the most proposed constitutional amendments and the most approved amendments with 96 proposed and 71 (74%) approved. States featured an average of 19 constitutional amendments on the ballot from 2006 through 2019.
The following map shows the number of constitutional amendments ratified in each state from 2006 through 2019, with states featuring more constitutional changes in a darker shade:
Related ballot measures
A similar amendment is on the 2020 ballot for voters in North Dakota. The North Dakota measure only applies to citizen-initiated constitutional amendments, not legislatively referred constitutional amendments. The measure would require initiated constitutional amendments passed by voters to be submitted to the legislature for approval. If the legislature does not approve the amendment, the measure would be placed on the ballot again at the next statewide election and would become effective if approved by the voters a second time.
Direct democracy measures, 2020
- See also: Direct democracy measures on the ballot
Five measures that were designed to change the state's laws governing citizen initiatives or other ballot measures were on the ballot in four states for the election on November 3, 2020. The measures included questions about a state's initiative and referendum process, signature gathering requirements, constitutional amendment requirements, and other topics. Click [show] to read more about direct democracy measures in 2020.
Direct democracy measures, 2020 | |||||
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2020 direct democracy measures on the ballot: Click here to read about changes to laws governing ballot measures in 2019 and here to read about changes to laws governing ballot measures in 2020. |
Path to the ballot
The state process
In Florida, the number of signatures required for an initiated constitutional amendment is equal to 8% of the votes cast in the preceding presidential election. Florida also has a signature distribution requirement, which requires that signatures equaling at least 8% of the district-wide vote in the last presidential election be collected from at least half (14) of the state's 28 congressional districts. Signatures remain valid until February 1 of an even-numbered year.[9] Signatures must be verified by February 1 of the general election year the initiative aims to appear on the ballot.
Proposed measures are reviewed by the state attorney general and state supreme court after proponents collect 25% of the required signatures across the state in each of one-half of the state's congressional districts (222,898 signatures for 2024 ballot measures). After these preliminary signatures have been collected, the secretary of state must submit the proposal to the Florida Attorney General and the Financial Impact Estimating Conference (FIEC). The attorney general is required to petition the Florida Supreme Court for an advisory opinion on the measure's compliance with the single-subject rule, the appropriateness of the title and summary, and whether or not the measure "is facially invalid under the United States Constitution."[10]
The requirements to get an initiative certified for the 2020 ballot:
- Signatures: 766,200 valid signatures
- Deadline: The deadline for signature verification was February 1, 2020. As election officials have 30 days to check signatures, petitions should be submitted at least one month before the verification deadline.
In Florida, proponents of an initiative file signatures with local elections supervisors, who are responsible for verifying signatures. Supervisors are permitted to use random sampling if the process can estimate the number of valid signatures with 99.5% accuracy. Enough signatures are considered valid if the random sample estimates that at least 115% of the required number of signatures are valid.
Details about the initiative
- The initiative was approved for circulation on April 19, 2019.[4]
- The measure was certified for the ballot on January 31, 2020. Proponents submitted 783,580 valid signatures.[4]
- The measure received the approval of the state supreme court on February 20, 2020.[4]
Cost of signature collection:
Sponsors of the measure hired a petition gathering company to collect signatures for the petition to qualify this measure for the ballot. A total of $8,798,870.70 was spent to collect the 766,200 valid signatures required to put this measure before voters, resulting in a total cost per required signature (CPRS) of $11.48.
How to cast a vote
- See also: Voting in Florida
Click "Show" to learn more about voter registration, identification requirements, and poll times in Florida.
How to cast a vote in Florida | |||||
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Poll timesIn Florida, all polls are open from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. An individual who is in line at the time polls close must be allowed to vote. Florida is split between Eastern and Central time zones.[11] Registration requirements
To vote in Florida, one must be at least 18 years of age, a citizen of the United States, and a legal resident of Florida and the county in which he or she intends to vote. Pre-registration is available beginning at 16 years of age.[12][13] Voters may retrieve registration applications at the following locations:[12]
A registration form is also available online. The form can be printed and submitted via mail.[13] Automatic registrationFlorida does not practice automatic voter registration. Online registration
Florida has implemented an online voter registration system. Residents can register to vote by visiting this website. Same-day registrationFlorida does not allow same-day voter registration. Residency requirementsTo register to vote in Florida, you must be a resident of the state. State law does not specify a length of time for which you must have been a resident to be eligible. Verification of citizenshipFlorida does not require proof of citizenship for voter registration. Verifying your registrationThe page Voter Information Lookup, run by the Florida Department of State, allows residents to check their voter registration status online. Voter ID requirementsFlorida requires voters to present photo identification with a signature while voting.[14][15] The following list of accepted ID was current as of April 2023. Click here for the Florida Secretary of State's page on accepted ID to ensure you have the most current information.
A voter who presents an ID without a signature must show a second form of identification that includes the voter’s signature. |
See also
External links
- Florida Division of Elections Booklet: Proposed Constitutional Amendments 2020 General Election
- Initiative 19-08 information
- Initiative 19-08 full text
Support |
OppositionSubmit links to editor@ballotpedia.org. |
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Florida Department of Elections, "Initiative 19-08 text," accessed April 23, 2019
- ↑ Florida Office of Economic & Demographic Research, "Financial Impact Estimating Conference: Voter Approval of Constitutional Amendments Serial Number 19-08," accessed February 20, 2020
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 The Florida Constitutional Amendments Project, "Florida's Constitution," accessed April 3, 2015
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Florida Department of Elections, "Initiative 19-08 overview," accessed April 23, 2019
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source. Cite error: Invalid
<ref>
tag; name "quotedisclaimer" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ Miami Dade, "Official Sample Ballot- General Election," accessed September 30, 2020
- ↑ St. Pete Polls, "Florida Statewide survey conducted by StPetePolls.org conducted October 10, 2019," accessed October 11, 2019
- ↑ This number is based on the number of approved constitutional amendments to the Florida 1968 Constitution. A list of these amendments can be found here.
- ↑ Before the passage of Florida Senate Bill 1794 of 2020, signatures remained valid for a period of two years
- ↑ Florida State Senate, "Florida Senate Bill 1794," accessed April 13, 2020
- ↑ Florida Secretary of State, "FAQ - Voting," accessed April 10, 2023
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Florida Division of Elections, "National Voter Registration Act (NVRA)," August 2, 2022
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Florida Division of Elections, "Register to Vote or Update your Information," accessed April 10, 2023
- ↑ Florida Division of Elections, "Election Day Voting," accessed April 10, 2023
- ↑ Florida Division of Elections, "Florida History: Voter ID at the Polls," accessed April 10, 2023
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