MEMPHIS, Tenn. — As the November General Election rolls around, voters in Tennessee should be aware of four proposed state Constitutional amendments which will be on the ballot.
The Nov. 8 election will include the race for Tennessee governor, the U.S. House of Representatives, and other offices in different counties, as well as the amendments.
For a Constitutional amendment, voters will choose Yes or No. Yes means a voter supports the amendment and wants to adopt the changes to the state Constitution. No means a voter wants to keep the Constitution as is and does not support changing the language.
Proposed Constitutional Amendments
The four proposed amendments are:
- An amendment to Article XI regarding the right to work
- An amendment to Article II and Article III about the exercise of the powers and duties of the Governor during disability
- An amendment to Article I, Section 33 to prohibiting slavery and involuntary servitude
- An amendment to Article IX about disqualifications
Learn more about each of these amendments and read the exact language at https://sos.tn.gov/amendments.
How are amendments passed?
For an amendment to pass and become part of the Tennessee Constitution, two things must happen. There must be more Yes votes than No votes supporting the amendment. And the number of Yes votes must equal a majority of the total votes in the gubernatorial election.
Explanation from the Secretary of State’s Office: “To determine the number of votes needed to adopt a proposed Constitutional amendment, votes for all candidates for governor are added together and then divided by two. If there are more yes votes than no votes on the proposed amendment and the number of yes votes exceeds 50% +1 of the total votes for governor, the amendment passes and becomes part of the Constitution. The Constitutional amendment fails if the number of yes votes does not meet or exceed the threshold, or if there are more no votes than yes votes.”
Why it's important
"Tennessee voters need to be aware of the proposed Constitutional amendments on the ballot," said Secretary of State Tre Hargett in a news release. "Voters can view the exact ballot language on our website in order to be prepared to make informed voting decisions."
For more on the upcoming General Election in Tennessee, go to https://sos.tn.gov/govotetn.
