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Public Policy Center's Arkansas Ballot Issue Newsletter & Voter Guide Archives

The Public Policy Center has provided researched-based fact sheets about Arkansas' statewide ballot issues since its creation in 2004. We have also published a monthly e-mail newsletter since 2014 about proposed ballot issues, legislative amendments and any court challenges that occurred on the path to the general election ballot.  

Click on the years above to find older voter guides explaining ballot measures, and past issues of our monthly e-mail newsletter about Arkansas ballot issues. Scroll down to find 2020 newsletters.

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2020 Newsletters

Courts Disqualify 3 Citizen Initiatives - September 2020
Arkansas voters have fewer decisions to make on the statewide ballot after court rulings this month disqualified three citizen initiatives.
 
Supreme Court Removes Issue 4, Issue 5 - August 2020
Sponsors using the word "acquired" when submitting information about canvasser background checks to the state led to tens of thousands of voter signatures being tossed and Issue 4 and Issue 5 being struck from the ballot.
 

Aug. 20 Deadline to Certify Statewide Ballot, But Uncertainty and Court Cases Continue - August 2020
Arkansas' official statewide ballot will be certified and sent to county clerks by Aug. 20 but that process won't resolve the uncertainty over which ballot measures will remain when voters finally cast their votes this fall.

Ballot Issue Groups Submit Signatures - July 2020
Ballot issue groups submitted voter signatures for three proposed constitutional amendments by the deadline Monday afternoon.

Ballot Issue Groups Scramble as Pandemic Petition Rules Change - June 2020
Ballot issue groups pivoted again this month in how they collected voter signatures for their proposed constitutional amendments after a federal appeals court blocked an earlier ruling that allowed them to collect signatures by mail.

Voters Can Sign Ballot Issue Petitions Without Canvasser As Witness, Judge Rules - May 2020
A federal judge said Monday that Arkansas voters can sign ballot issue petitions without a canvasser witnessing it, easing some requirements during the pandemic for citizen initiative groups to collect the nearly 90,000 voter signatures required to put proposed constitutional amendments on the November ballot.

Lawsuit Filed to Extend Voter Signature Deadline & to Allow Virtual Canvassing - April 2020
A group wanting to change the process for drawing congressional and legislative districts in Arkansas recently filed a federal lawsuit seeking additional time to collect voter signatures for their ballot measure citing the COVID-19 pandemic.

Signature Canvassing Opportunities Disappear As Events Cancel Across Arkansas - March 2020 
Canvassers who rely on spring festivals and events to collect voter signatures needed to put constitutional amendments and state laws on the ballot are seeing these opportunities disappearing in light of COVID-19.

Dozen Ballot Proposals in Signature Phase - February 2020
A dozen potential ballot issues have been filed with the Arkansas Secretary of State's Office, meaning voters could be asked to sign 12 different petitions for the November ballot.

Referendum Survives Legal Challenges - January 2020
The Arkansas Supreme Court and now a Pulaski County Circuit Court judge have rejected efforts to prevent a referendum on a new state law from being placed on the November statewide ballot. 

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