Why Missouri's proposed 'electoral college' for ballot measures could be unconstitutional

A new effort from the Missouri GOP to create what amounts to an "Electoral College" for constitutional amendments is one of the most aggressive moves yet by Republicans anywhere to undermine direct democracy. But this latest attempt to restrict voters' power—just as reproductive-rights advocates are working to place an abortion-rights measure on the ballot—could be dead on arrival because there's a good chance it violates the U.S. Constitution.

The proposal, passed by the state Senate last week on a party-line vote, would require that voter-initiated constitutional amendments be approved by both a majority of voters statewide and a majority of votes "in each of more than half of the congressional districts in the state." If the state House signs off, the measure would go before voters later this year—possibly in August, ahead of a potential abortion vote in November.

Missouri Republicans seem to have reached a consensus that they should make the process of amending the constitution harder, but they've gotten bogged down in a debate over how best to do so. As it stands now, the state constitution requires a simple majority of voters statewide to approve constitutional amendments, whether proposed by the legislature or initiated by voters.

But with abortion-rights supporters already gathering signatures to put an initiative before voters that would roll back the state's near-total ban on the procedure, Republicans are impatient to act after their previous attempt to restrict direct democracy last year died thanks to GOP infighting.

Notably, their new approach would raise the requirement for ratification of amendments proposed by voters, but it would not alter the requirement for any amendments advanced by the legislature. As a consequence, voter-initiated measures would need to win a majority statewide and in a majority of the state's congressional districts—which were gerrymandered by Republicans.