2011 Constitutional Initiatives

LINKS
Public Hearing Guidelines

The Secretary of State’s Office is hosting a series of Public Hearings to give all Mississippians the opportunity to express their opinions about each of the Initiative measures to be decided in the November 8, 2011 General Election. The public is invited to attend any or all forums. Individuals wishing to speak either in support of or against any of the three ballot initiatives may sign in beginning at 5 p.m. on the evening of each hearing.

Individuals may also submit written comments by selecting an initiative and clicking the "Add Comments" button at the bottom.

Mississippi’s Initiative Process

Delbert Hosemann
Secretary of State

The Mississippi initiative law affords voters an avenue for addressing important constitutional issues which the State Legislature does not. This year, the three initiatives appearing on the November 8 ballot address basic constitutional issues: the integrity of our vote, the definition of when life begins, and government’s right to seize private property for non-public use.

After registering the initiative with the Secretary of State’s Office, the official ballot title and summary are prepared by the Mississippi Attorney General. Initiatives are only valid for one year, during which time a petition must be circulated to gather signatures to place the measure on the next statewide General Election ballot. According to State law, for an initiative measure to be placed on this year’s ballot, a minimum of 89,285 certified signatures must be gathered with at least 17,857 certified signatures from each of the five congressional districts as they existed in the year 2000. Signatures must be certified by county circuit clerks. A completed petition is filed with the Secretary of State’s Office, along with a $500 filing fee.

Not only must an initiative receive a majority of the total votes cast for that particular initiative, it must also receive more than 40% of the total votes cast in that election.

Our Agency is currently in the “voter information” stage of the initiative process. According to State law, we are required to publish this pamphlet in addition to holding public hearings across the State in each of the five congressional districts. I encourage you to take advantage of these educational brochures and to attend the hearings prior the election. Be informed when you head to the polls to vote and decide these issues.

As always, if we may be of any assistance, we encourage you to contact our Elections Hotline at 1(800) 829-6786.