US Voters Face Local and State Governance Referendums
Voters in Washington and Wisconsin will decide on various government charter and constitutional amendments during the November 3 elections.
Voters across Washington and Wisconsin will decide on a series of government charter and constitutional amendments during the November 3 elections. These measures range from local administrative shifts in Washington to statewide ideological battles in Wisconsin.
In Washington, several counties and cities are proposing structural changes. Pierce County voters will consider Charter Amendment 53, which would change the sheriff from an elected to an appointed position, effectively removing current Sheriff Keith Swank from office by January 1, 2027. Other measures include nonpartisan election requirements and tax supermajority rules in Snohomish County, council term limits in Clark County, and the creation of an ethics review board in Clallam County. In the city of Everett, Proposition 1 seeks to ban city council members and mayors from holding other elected offices simultaneously.
Meanwhile, the Republican-led Wisconsin State Legislature has placed three statewide constitutional amendments on the ballot to counter actions by Governor Tony Evers. These referendums aim to prohibit the governor from using partial vetoes to increase taxes or fees, ban the closure of places of worship during states of emergency, and prohibit governmental entities from granting preferential treatment or discriminating based on race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in public administration and education.
