Missouri voters say no to constitutional amendment on state's initiative petition process 

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Missourians took to the polls to vote on Amendment 4, a constitutional amendment that took aim at citizen-led initiative petitions.

Voters didn’t pass the measure Tuesday with 82.5% of the vote, according to unofficial election results.

Amendment 4 attempted to change the requirement for ballot measures to pass. If it had passed, Missouri would have become the first state to use a concurrent majority to pass measures.

The rule would have only applied to constitutional amendment initiatives put on the ballot by citizens using the signature-gathering referendum process, not measures placed on the ballot by the state legislature.

In recent years, voters approved constitutional amendments on recreational marijuana, abortion access, sports betting and expanded Medicaid through the petition process.

A statewide simple majority of 50% plus one will remain the requirement to pass such measures.

Missouri House Minority Leader Ashley Aune (D-Kansas City) said the "overwhelming defeat" of Amendments 4 and 5 should "surprise no one," and neither should "the electoral consequences that are coming for lawmakers who voted for these schemes over the will of their constituents."

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