Amendments to Missouri Constitution are on the line amid GOP infighting

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Republican Missouri lawmakers are divided over how far to go with a ballot measure that would make it more difficult for future voters to amend the state constitution.

The GOP-led House on Thursday amended a proposed constitutional amendment that, if approved by voters, would raise the vote threshold needed for all constitutional amendments going forward.

The heart of the proposed amendment would raise the percentage of votes needed to enact voter-directed constitutional changes.

Currently, the constitution is amended with a simple majority statewide vote.

Under the Republican proposal, amendments also would need a majority of votes in five of the state’s eight congressional districts to pass.

House lawmakers on Thursday added a provision to the amendment to ban noncitizens from voting — which they already can’t do — setting up a showdown with the GOP-led Senate.

In the Senate, Democrats earlier this year negotiated with Republicans to strip the language stating that noncitizens cannot vote.

House Republican Majority Leader Jon Patterson on Monday acknowledged that including additional provisions could mean that the proposed amendment is killed in the Senate. But Patterson said House members are willing to take that risk.

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