No. 13-2023
Review and approval of the summary statement prepared for the initiative petition submitted by Winston Apple amending Article III of the Missouri Constitution (2024-008).
Cite as Mo. Op. Att'y Gen. No. 13-2023
ATTORNEY GENERAL OF MISSOURI
ANDREW BAILEY
Supreme Court Building
207 W. High Street
P.O. Box 899
Jefferson City, MO 65102
Phone: (573) 751-3321
Fax: (573) 751-0774
www.ago.mo.gov
January 17, 2023
OPINION LETTER NO. 13-2023
The Honorable John R. Ashcroft
Missouri Secretary of State
James C. Kirkpatrick State Information Center
600 West Main Street
Jefferson City, MO 65101
Dear Secretary Ashcroft:
This opinion letter responds to your request dated January 6, 2023 for our review
under § 116.334, RSMo of a proposed summary statement prepared for the petition
submitted by Winston Apple, 2024-008. The proposed summary statement is as follows:
Do you want to amend the Missouri Constitution to:
•
change voting in general elections for the offices of governor, lieutenant governor,
secretary of state, attorney general, state treasurer, state auditor and United States
senator, if more than two candidates appear on the ballot at either a primary or
general election, to allow voters to rank candidates in order of preference for each
office;
•
eliminate the lowest ranked candidates and redistribute their votes based on
number of votes and voters’ rankings until a candidate receives at least 50% plus
one vote to win; and
•
resolve ties with random mathematical process?
Pursuant to § 116.334, RSMo, we approve the legal content and form of the proposed
statement. Because our review of the statement is mandated by statute, no action that we
take with respect to such review should be construed as an endorsement of the petition, nor
as the expression of any view regarding the objectives of its proponents.
Very truly yours,
ANDREW BAILEY
Attorney General
OP-2023-013