Michigan Proposal 1 fails as voters reject constitutional convention
Michigan voters on Tuesday resoundingly rejected a ballot proposal that would have led to a rewrite of the state Constitution.
EDITOR'S NOTE: This story was originally published by Bridge Michigan, a nonprofit and nonpartisan news organization. To get regular coverage from Bridge Michigan, sign up for a free Bridge Michigan newsletter here.
Story Summary
- Michigan Proposal 1 failed. Measure proposed a new convention to rewrite Michigan’s 63-year-old constitution
- A diverse coalition spent $3 million opposing the measure
- Voters have repeatedly rejected proposals to rewrite the constitution Michiganders adopted in 1963
By Kelly House
Bridge Michigan
Michigan voters on Tuesday resoundingly rejected a ballot proposal that would have led to a rewrite of the state Constitution.
The Associated Press declared the proposal failed at about 9:45 p.m., with 3 out of every 4 votes opposing the measure in early returns.
The proposal asking voters to convene a constitutional convention automatically appears on Michiganders’ ballots every 16 years and has not succeeded in more than six decades.
Michigan’s current constitution was adopted in 1963.
Voter Jerrilyn Mathews of Manton was among voters who opposed the proposal.
"You open everything up, and whoever's in power now gets to change everything," Mathews told Bridge, explaining her opposition. "That's not the way it should be.”
A diverse coalition including labor, business and issue advocacy groups spent nearly $3 million urging voters to oppose the measure, contending the lengthy process to revise Michigan’s constitution would waste money and give special interests a chance to radically alter the document.
They raised fears that reopening the document could lead to the overturning of voter-approved provisions, such as the 2022 amendment that enshrined abortion access.
The opposition group, a coalition of special interest groups ironically calling itself Protect MI Constitution from Special Interests, celebrated Tuesday’s outcome as a victory for taxpayers and democracy.
“Today’s vote reflects a shared belief that Michigan’s energy is best spent solving problems, not creating new uncertainty,” said Wendy Block, executive vice president of business advocacy for the Michigan Chamber of Commerce. “We were proud to stand alongside business, labor, education, and community partners in support of that vision.”
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There was little organized support for the proposal, although some influential Michiganders such as Republican state Sen. Ed McBroom urged a “yes” vote. They argued a convention could force conversations about issues that may have bipartisan voter support but get limited attention in Lansing. Among them: data centers and dark money in politics.
“There’s this unholy alliance of Lansing swamp creatures who are opposed to (a convention) — but normal Michiganders seem to support it,” Republican political consultant Dennis Lennox told Bridge Michigan in September.
Proposal 1 would have triggered a lengthy process:
- First, Michigan’s political parties would have held primaries to nominate convention delegates.
- Next, Michigan would have held a general election by mid-2027 to select a delegate for each of Michigan’s 148 House and Senate districts.
- The Legislature would have needed to decide how much convention delegates were paid.
- Then, delegates would have then convened in Lansing by Oct. 5, 2027, triggering a constitutional review process with no set end date. They would have appointed officers, hired staff, debated what to add or remove from Michigan’s constitution and eventually proposed a rewrite for voters to consider.
- Within 90 days after the convention adjourned, Michigan voters would have weighed another ballot proposal asking whether they wanted to adopt the convention’s proposed new constitution.
The nonpartisan state Senate Fiscal Agency estimated it would have cost Michigan $80 million to hold a convention.
The last time voters considered the constitutional convention proposal, in 2010, 33% of voters supported the idea.
However, voters have repeatedly amended the constitution through ballot initiatives.
— This article first appeared on Bridge Michigan and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
