Showdown expected this week in Jefferson City on initiative petitions

Jefferson City, MO (KMOX) - Missouri Republicans only have a few days to push through one of their legislative priorities -- a ballot measure that would make it harder to amend the state constitution.

Senate Majority Leader, Republican Senator Cindy O'Laughlin tells KMOX's Total Information AM, it's about making sure that rural voters have a voice in any statewide ballot issue. The measure being considered would require any initiative petition to pass by both a simple majority of votes, and a majority of votes in at least 5 of 8 Missouri Congressional districts. "I often liken it to the Electoral College. If we wanted New York and California to decide what we do in Missouri we wouldn't have the Electoral College."

KMOX asked O'Laughlin whether the legislation is simply an effort to derail another ballot initiative that seeks to enshrine abortion rights in Missouri's constitution, "yes we have spoken for the lives of the unborn and we have banned abortion in the state, but there are people who think that's wrong and I'm not certain that initiative petition reform is going to offset that."

Democrats have vowed to fight the measure, in part because of things that have been tacked on that they contend are only intended to sweeten the deal for conservatives. Some Democratic lawmakers have also warned that the state's voters won't accept a higher threshold for constitutional amendments.

If the measure passes, it's expected to go before Missouri voters in August. In recent years, the initiative petition process has been used to expand Medicaid and legalize recreational marijuana.

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