August 2022
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Board Rejects Marijuana, Casino Ballot Titles
The Arkansas Board of Election Commissioners on Wednesday rejected ballot titles of two proposed constitutional amendments that would legalize recreational marijuana and remove Pope County as a casino gaming location.

The board's role in approving ballot titles is relatively new and it's likely sponsors will appeal to the Arkansas Supreme Court.

The seven-member Board of Election Commissioners became responsible for certifying ballot titles in 2019, when the legislature removed the Attorney General from that role.

The board is made up of the Secretary of State, two members appointed by the Governor, and one member each appointed by the chair of the state Democratic party, the chair of the state Republican party, the President Pro Tempore of the Arkansas Senate, and the Speaker of the Arkansas House of Representatives.

The board's rejection follows Monday's certification from the Secretary of State that Responsible Growth Arkansas had collected enough voter signatures to put recreational marijuana on the ballot.

Recreational Marijuana Proposal
The proposal would change Arkansas' medical marijuana amendment from 2016 to allow recreational sales and the opening of more dispensaries and cultivation facilities.

The group's attorney, Steve Lancaster, spoke in favor of the proposal's ballot title at the Aug. 3 board meeting and said they went "above and beyond" what's required explaining to voters the changes in the proposed amendment.

"The perfect ballot title can not be created," Lancaster said, adding that had the title explained every section that would be deleted from the original law, it would be longer than the amendment itself.

Two commissioners said they thought the ballot title should more explicitly explain how the proposal would remove a requirement that foods or drinks combined with marijuana not exceed 10 mg of THC per portion. The title instead mentioned the proposal would eliminate an existing section of law. A person must read that section of the law to know what was being eliminated.

One of those commissioners also said she was concerned that removing requirements for owners to have background checks could allow people with criminal backgrounds to own marijuana facilities.

Casino Proposal
Former Attorney General Dustin McDaniel asked the board Wednesday to reject a ballot title seeking to remove Pope County as a casino gaming location.

Pope County is one of four locations approved by voters in 2018. McDaniel is representing the Cherokee Nation Businesses, which received the casino license for Pope County after several lawsuits.

McDaniel recalled how when he was responsible for reviewing ballot titles, he thought it was important to consider why a sponsor was pushing an issue.

Pope County residents who formed Fair Play for Arkansas 2022 received financial support from the Choctaw Nation for their campaign to eliminate the fourth location. The Choctaw Nation owns a casino in Oklahoma that is within 100 miles of Pope County.

McDaniel said voters should know the impact on the Cherokee Nation and county if they lost the license.

"It's an omission great enough to warrant decertification," he said.

Ben Cross, the county judge in Pope County, also asked the board to reject the proposal because the wording referred to "casinos" rather than "casino," throwing into doubt the impact the amendment would have if passed.

Read the Citizen-Sponsored Proposals




What's Next?
The Secretary of State's Office has until Aug. 25 to send the official November ballot to county election commissions.

The 2022 ballot will include three proposed constitutional amendments from the Arkansas legislature. Find links to those proposals in a section below.

We will publish a voter guide online in early September on the final ballot measures. A printed voter guide will be available at county Extension offices by early October.
The Signature Counting Process Explained
Josh Bridges, an election director for the Secretary of State's Office, explained the two-part process the Secretary of State's Office uses to review petitions from around the state.
Phase 1: Intake.

"We check every petition part to ensure they are compliant with all requirements of Arkansas law. If a part does not meet all standards, it is taken out of the main petition and cannot be counted or verified."
Phase 2: Verification

"We take the remaining petition and search the petitioners (voters) against current voter registration data. During this process, we make sure the person signing the petition was a registered voter when they signed the petition."
Election workers finished verifying voter signatures on the recreational marijuana petitions. Responsible Growth Arkansas last month turned in 192,828 signatures.

On Monday (Aug. 1), the Secretary of State announced it had stopped processing petitions once workers reached 159,961 signatures. Of those, 90,375 signatures were verified. That puts the group above the 89,151 signatures required.

When this newsletter was being written, election workers were still reviewing petitions submitted by Fair Play for Arkansas 2022, which seeks to remove Pope County from the Constitution as a casino location. The group submitted 103,096 signatures.
2022 Ballot Measures from the Legislature
Arkansas House and Senate members voted to put three proposed constitutional amendments on the Nov. 8, 2022 General Election ballot. Check out our websites on each issue.
A constitutional amendment to allow the General Assembly to convene in extraordinary session upon the issuance of a joint written proclamation of the speaker of the House of Representatives and the president pro tempore of the Senate or upon the submission of a written proclamation containing the signatures of at least 2/3 of the members of the House of Representatives and at least 2/3 of the members of the Senate to the speaker of the House of Representatives and the president pro tempore of the Senate requesting that the General Assembly convene in extraordinary session
A constitutional amendment to reform certain measures presented to voters, to be known as the "Constitutional Amendment and Ballot Initiative Reform Amendment”
A constitutional amendment to create the "Arkansas Religious Freedom Amendment"
2022 Arkansas Election Dates
Aug. 25 - Deadline for Secretary of State to send counties the official ballot

Oct. 10 - Last day to register to vote ahead of General Election

Oct. 24 - Early voting starts for General Election, court elections, school elections

Nov. 8 - General Election, court elections, school elections

Dec. 6 - Runoff election, if needed, for General Election and school elections
Public Policy Center | uaex.uada.edu/ballot
The Public Policy Center was established in 2004 to provide Arkansans with timely, credible, unaligned and research-based information and education about public issues. Public issues are defined as pressing and emerging issues that involve multiple points of view and have widespread consequences.

Our goals are to:
  • Increase citizen knowledge, awareness and understanding of public issues;
  • Enhance public participation in decisions regarding public issues, and
  • Help citizens craft, evaluate and implement alternative solutions to public issues.

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