Proposal 1 would OK a rewrite of Michigan's state constitution

LANSING — The question gets asked every 16 years and Michiganders always answer it with a resounding: "No."

Giving a green light to a potential wholesale rewrite of the state constitution without knowing who will do the rewriting is kind of — scary — many voters of all political stripes seem to agree.

But this year, with an angry electorate in an anti-establishment mood, there are no sure bets on how the constitutional question, identified as Proposal 1 on the ballot, will be answered.

Conservatives worry that if liberals gain control of a constitutional convention, Michigan could find itself with a progressive income tax, banned under the current constitution from 1963, requiring the wealthy pay a higher rate.

"We don't need an all-or-nothing fix," former U.S. Rep. Mike Bishop, a Republican, said at an Oct. 19 event organized by the "no" campaign, Protect MI Constitution From Special Interests. "It hands a blank check to whoever lobbies the hardest."

Liberals worry that if conservatives control the convention, they could lose the abortion rights they got enshrined just four years ago, or see new voting requirements, such as proof of citizenship to register to vote.

With a "yes" vote, "we will be plunged into a two-year-long culture war," Mike Duggan, a longtime Democrat and former Detroit mayor who briefly ran for governor as an Independent, said at the same Oct. 19 event in Detroit.

Though fewer in number, there are also voices in favor of Proposal 1.

Republican consultant and writer Dennis Lennox says a constitutional rewrite is overdue and it's mainly "special interests" who don't want it to happen.

"A convention could establish meaningful safeguards against dark money and influence peddling," Lennox said in an Oct. 6 column in the Holland Sentinel. "It could subject the governor and Legislature to the Freedom of Information Act and clarify that the governing boards of public universities, notably Michigan and Michigan State, must comply with the Open Meetings Act" — an issue that has long been the subject of litigation.

The question

"Shall a convention of elected delegates be convened in 2027 to draft a general revision of the State Constitution for presentation to the state’s voters for their approval or rejection?"

What a yes vote means

Michigan would then elect 148 convention delegates one for each state House and Senate district in partisan elections. Both a primary and a general election would need to be held by May 22, according to a House Fiscal Agency summary, so that elected delegates could convene in Lansing by Oct. 5, 2027.

After that, the delegates are pretty much on their own. They choose their own officers and set their own rules of procedure. They could completely rewrite the constitution, make only minor changes, or leave it completely as is. There is no time limit on their work. The last constitutional convention began in 1961 and lasted about 10 months.

Whatever a majority of the delegates agree to would be submitted to Michigan voters as a single document, no sooner than 90 days after the convention adjourns. Michigan voters would then give that document either a thumbs up or a thumbs down, with a revised constitution either approved or rejected by majority vote.

The House Fiscal Agency estimates the cost of the convention at $22.3 million. It estimates an additional $56 million in associated elections costs.

What a no vote means

If Proposal 1 is rejected, Michigan would stick with its 1963 constitution, which is still subject to amendment on a piecemeal basis and has been amended by voters 39 times since 1963.

Similarly, if there is a "yes" vote on Proposal 1 but a voter rejection of whatever the constitutional convention delegates proposed, the 1963 constitution would continue.

Voters would next be asked about a constitutional convention in 2042.

The history

In 2010, Michigan voters rejected a constitutional convention, with nearly 2 million no votes compared to about 983,000 yes votes.

In 1994, the proposal was rejected with 2 million no votes and about 778,000 in favor.

In 1978, 2.1 million Michiganders said no and about 640,000 said yes.

The last constitutional convention launched the political career of Republican George Romney, an auto executive who played a prominent role in the 1961 constitutional convention before he was elected governor in 1962.

Contact Paul Egan: 517-372-8660 or pegan@freepress.com.