No. 29-2023
Review and approval of the summary statement prepared for the initiative petition submitted by Winston Apple amending Article VIII of the Missouri Constitution (2024-012).
Cite as Mo. Op. Att'y Gen. No. 29-2023
WE
ESTO
ATTORNEY GENERAL OF MISSOURI
ANDREW BAILEY
January 24, 2023
OPINION LETTER NO. 29-2023
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 13, 2023 for our
review under § 116.334, RSMo of a proposed summary statement prepared for the petition
submitted by Winston Apple, 2024-12. The proposed summary statement is as follows:
Do you want to amend the Missouri Constitution to:
do away with party designation and primary elections for the office of governor,
lieutenant governor, secretary of state, attorney general, state treasurer, state
auditor, United States senator, United States representative, state senator, state
representative, and circuit judge;
make the general election a runoff between a minimum of five candidates for each
office using ranked choice voting; and
use a random selection algorithm prior to tabulation to resolve ties between
candidates if one should occur?
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
Broadway Building
P.O. Box 899
Jefferson City, MO 65102
Phone: (573) 751-3321
OP-2023-029
Fax: (573) 751-0774
www.ago.mo.gov