Missouri Supreme Court to hear three cases on November ballot measures

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

Three Missouri Supreme Court hearings are set to take place Wednesday regarding potential November ballot measures.

Respect Missouri Voters will be at the Supreme Court as the group continues to fight for Amendment 6 regarding the citizen-led petition to be on the November ballot. The group looks to add new rules for initiative petitions and make it harder for lawmakers to overturn things passed through that process.

Amendment 6 would:

• Prohibit politicians from overturning or changing initiatives passed by voters without widespread agreement.  
• Protect our constitutional right to the initiative and referendum process.
• Require ballot summaries to be clear, unbiased, fair, accurate and easy to understand.

Last month, a Cole County judge ruled that Secretary of State Denny Hoskins was right to reject the initiative petition seeking to check the General Assembly's power to change voter-approved policy.

Respect Missouri Voters will hold a rally following Wednesday's hearing at 9:45 a.m. The group is also inviting supporters of Amendment 6 to hear opening arguments on the steps of the Missouri Supreme Court at 9 a.m.

The Group People, Not Politicians also has two hearings against Secretary of State Denny Hoskins in the Supreme Court on Wednesday. The group sued Hoskins to get their vote on the ballot between the new and old congressional maps.

The Cole County judge sided with Hoskins that the Missouri Constitution does not allow citizens to challenge congressional maps approved by legislators through a ballot measure.

The group also sued Hoskins in a separate lawsuit for refusing to check any signatures gathered in the initiative petition before Oct. 15. The judge also ruled that Hoskins was allowed to toss out signatures that were gathered on a petition before a certain date.

Both rulings were appealed and are expected to be challenged in court Wednesday.