{"id":40498,"date":"2026-10-20T22:50:32","date_gmt":"2026-10-21T03:50:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/unitedresourceconnection.org\/cannon-ball-nd-58528\/explaining-amendment-l\/"},"modified":"2026-10-20T22:50:35","modified_gmt":"2026-10-21T03:50:35","slug":"explaining-amendment-l","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unitedresourceconnection.org\/cannon-ball-nd-58528\/explaining-amendment-l\/","title":{"rendered":"Explaining Amendment L"},"content":{"rendered":"
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RAPID CITY\u2014South Dakota voters will decide in November whether a majority should remain a majority when they amend their state constitution.<\/p>\n

Constitutional Amendment L would require every future amendment or revision to the South Dakota Constitution to receive 60 percent of the vote. The present requirement is a simple majority. If L passes, an amendment supported by 59 percent of voters would lose to the 41 percent voting against it.<\/p>\n

The amendment applies equally to proposals placed on the ballot by the Legislature and those advanced by citizen petition. It does not apply to ordinary initiated laws or referendums. Ironically, Amendment L itself needs only a simple majority to establish the higher standard for every amendment that follows it.<\/p>\n

The Republican-controlled Legislature placed L on the ballot. The South Dakota Republican Party recommends a yes vote. Republican Rep. John Hughes of Sioux Falls and Sen. Sue Peterson of Sioux Falls sponsored the proposal.<\/p>\n

Supporters argue that a constitution establishes the basic structure and powers of government and should not be altered by a temporary or narrow majority. They say wealthy national organizations can pour money into South Dakota, write complicated policy into the constitution and win with barely more than half the vote. A 60-percent requirement, they argue, would demonstrate broad public agreement before a permanent constitutional change is made.<\/p>\n

The South Dakota Democratic Party recommends a no vote. Opposition also includes the League of Women Voters, Dakota Rural Action, the South Dakota Education Association and health organizations. They argue that L replaces majority rule with minority veto power. Forty percent plus one voter could defeat something supported by considerably more South Dakotans.<\/p>\n

Each side has something to gain\u2014and something to lose.<\/p>\n

Republicans would gain protection against constitutional amendments involving abortion, marijuana, Medicaid or other policies their legislative majority opposes. Medicaid expansion passed in 2022 with approximately 56 percent. Had Amendment L been in effect, it would have failed. The 2020 recreational-marijuana amendment, which received about 54 percent before being overturned by the state Supreme Court, also would have failed at the ballot box.<\/p>\n

But L could eventually turn against Republicans. Democrats and allied independents would need only 40 percent plus one vote to stop a future conservative amendment. A Republican proposal supported by 58 or 59 percent of voters would still lose.<\/p>\n

Democrats face the reverse calculation. Because they hold only eight of the Legislature\u2019s 105 seats, a 41-percent blocking coalition might provide one of their few remaining checks on Republican constitutional power. But ballot initiatives are also one of the only ways Democratic policies can bypass the overwhelmingly Republican Legislature. L would make that route considerably more difficult.<\/p>\n

The language is politically neutral: the 60-percent rule applies to everybody. Its effects would not be neutral, however, because the two parties do not begin with equal power. Republicans can enact most of their program through ordinary legislation. Democrats cannot.<\/p>\n

A yes vote raises the requirement to 60 percent. A no vote preserves simple majority rule. Voters must decide whether the constitution needs protection from narrow majorities\u2014or whether future majorities need protection from a permanent 41-percent veto.<\/p>\n

(James Giago Davies is an enrolled member of OST. Contact him at skindiesel@msn.com)<\/p>\n

The post Explaining Amendment L<\/a> first appeared on Native Sun News Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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AI Graphic RAPID CITY\u2014South Dakota voters will decide in November whether a majority should remain a majority when they amend their state constitution. Constitutional Amendment L would require every future amendment or revision to the South Dakota Constitution to receive 60 percent of the vote. The present requirement is a <\/p>\n

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Shared by Native Sun News Today<\/a> October 20, 2026<\/p>\n

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