Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin rejects two ballot initiatives on paper and absentee ballots
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Two parallel efforts to tighten Arkansas voting via ballot initiatives hit a roadblock Wednesday after a rejection by the attorney general’s office.
Attorney General Tim Griffin’s office issued two opinions that proposed ballot measures that would mandate paper ballots and a second that would tighten the requirements for absentee ballots, if passed by voters, as having too vague language.
Constitutional amendment proposed to mandate paper ballots in all Arkansas elections
The first proposed initiative would mandate hand-marked paper ballots. While faulting the vagueness of the language, Griffin also found the structure the initiative proposed to be an issue.
In one case, the allocation of funding to support paper ballots had conflicting provisions, first leaving allocation to the general assembly but then leaving it unclear how funding would be allocated in a second reference, the AG’s opinion stated.
The initiative on absentee voting had similar faults in the AG’s opinion. Again, language was an issue coupled with a lack of clarity on how certain processes would take place.
One interesting point in Griffin’s opinion was that the proposed 45-word popular ballot title “is quite long,” the opinion stated. The opinion continued that the full 209-word ballot title was one long sentence separated only by commas, leading to a lack of clarity.
“You may wish to correct this,” the opinion stated.
Pulaski County voting machines rated 100% accurate in post-election audit
In both opinions, the AG found fault with how disabled voters would be defined and what allowances would be provided.
In the paper ballot initiative, the AG found a conflict between state and federal law in defining disability. In a second issue, the proposal would allow disabled voters to use voting machines.
“It is unclear to me how one votes by ‘voting machine’ when the proposed amendment repeals the use of voting machines,” the opinion stated.
In the absentee voter initiative, the disability requirement allowed help in marking a ballot for someone with a disability, but did not have anything about assisting disabled voters with handling an absentee ballot.
“It is unclear whether you intend to allow voters with disabilities to receive assistance with receiving and returning their absentee ballots,” the opinion stated. “If so, you should include an exemption similar to the one that allows assistance with marking ballots.”
Both initiatives may be resubmitted to the AG’s office. If approved, backers would need to get nearly 92,000 signatures from voters in 50 counties to the Secretary of States Office by July 5 for the proposal to make it to the November 2024 general election ballot.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KARK.
