Mediaboss Marketing

Learn about Tennessee's four proposed constitutional amendments

Four constitutional amendments will appear on Tennessee's Nov. 8, 2022 general election ballot. Here's a breakdown of what you're voting on.

Wochit

Tennessee voters will have a chance to vote on four constitutional amendments this fall, ranging from union issues to an effort to strip antiquated slavery language from the state's guiding document.

Constitutional amendments in Tennessee do not simply succeed if they receive more yes votes than no votes. Voter turnout in the governors race, where incumbent Republican Gov. Bill Lee faces Democrat Jason Martin, plays a significant role in the amendment process.

An amendment can only pass if it receives more yes votes than no votes and if the total number of yes votes constitutes a majority of the vote total in the gubernatorial election.

This unusual system has been challenged in the past, notably over a 2014 ballot measure that eliminated the right to an abortion from the Tennessee state constitution. The measure passed by 53 percent of voters.

A group of voters, who opposed the ballot measure, challenged Tennessees method of counting votes as a fundamentally unfair voting process, arguing voters in favor of the anti-abortion amendment could abstain from casting a vote for governor, thereby lowering the total number of votes the amendment would need to succeed.

Lawyers argued this gave yes voters an unconstitutional advantage over no voters, but a federal appellate court eventually sided with Tennessee and the U.S. Supreme Court declined to take up the case in 2018.

Here is a guide to the amendment measures on the Nov. 8 ballot:

Previously:US Supreme Court won't hear challenge to Tennessee's abortion amendment measure

The first amendment on Tennessee's ballot this fall is a "right-to-work" law that state Republicans and some business leaders support, while Democrats and major unions in the state have opposed it.

The amendment would allow employees to opt-out of joining a union and paying the dues even if the workforce is unionized.

With union participation on the rise in Tennessee and across the country, the state's major unions oppose the measure, arguing that if a majority of a workplace unionized, people could opt out of paying dues but still reap union benefits.

Meanwhile, major Republicans like Gov. Bill Lee and business interests support the amendment.

Read more:Tennessee's Amendment 1 would add right-to-work to state's constitution, unions oppose it

Tennessee's constitutional protocol in the event of an emergency that might incapacitate the governor is currently murky, which Amendment 2 seeks to change.

The amendment would create a temporary line of succession if the governor is unable to perform his or her duties.

Though the lieutenant governor is technically next in line, the position also serves at Speaker of the Senate. This could conflict with a constitutional ban on a person serving simultaneously in the state's executive and legislative branches.

Under the amendment, the Speaker of the Senate would assume the temporary duties of the governor and not be required to resign his or her seat in the General Assembly. But the Senate speaker would not be able to preside over a legislative chamber while temporarily holding the powers of the governor.

Read this:Amendment 2 would create a temporary line of succession if the governor is incapacitated

Amendment 3 aims to replace slavery language that has existed in the Tennessee Constitution for more than 150 years.

Though the Constitution was amended in 1865 to prohibit nearly all forms of slavery, a single line lingered to allow slavery and involuntary servitude for people convicted of crimes.

Amendment 3 would replace this line with an unmistakable ban: Slavery and involuntary servitude are forever prohibited in this State.

The campaign to pass the amendment has attracted widespread, bipartisan support.

'A matter of right and wrong': Amendment 3 to ban slavery from state constitution

The final amendment on the ballot would remove a longstanding but unenforced ban on clergy serving in the General Assembly.

Banning religious leaders from serving in state legislatures was a larger trend as states wrote their constitutions following the American Revolution, an effort to create a clear divide between church and state.

In 1978, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the ban was unconstitutional. It is no longer enforced, but the constitutional language has lingered. A yes vote on Amendment 4 would officially repeal the ban.

Related:Removing an unenforced ban on clergy in legislature: Tennessee's Amendment 4

Adam Friedman, Liam Adams and Lucas Finton contributed to this report.

Reach Melissa Brown at mabrown@tennessean.com.

Original post:
Constitutional amendments: A voting guide to Tennessee's 2022 ballot - Columbia Daily Herald