Michigan voters reject constitutional convention proposal for fourth time

Michigan voters have rejected Proposal 1, which would have called for a convention to rewrite the state constitution, marking the fourth time since 1963 that the measure has failed. Unofficial results from the New York Times indicate that 75% of voters opposed the ballot measure, with the network calling the result after 15% of votes were tallied.

The 1963 Michigan constitution requires this proposal to appear on the ballot every 16 years. Had it passed, delegates would have been elected from every state House and Senate district to draft a new constitution, which voters would have finalized in November 2027. Past attempts at a constitutional convention have failed by wide margins, though support has grown incrementally with each iteration.

A coalition of more than 60 organizations, including the League of Women Voters and the Michigan Chamber of Commerce, opposed the measure, arguing it could place constitutional changes in the hands of elected delegates rather than voters. Former congressman Dan Kildee, who also campaigned against the proposal, stated that voters correctly identified the convention as an imprecise method for making constitutional changes compared to specific initiatives.

Read the full story at WCMU Public Media.