On Saturday, Gov. Brad Little signed a bill into law that adds new rules to the state's ballot initiative process. The bill’s opponents say the governor likely signed a death warrant for any future attempts by citizens to bring an initiative to the ballot box, and are prepared to challenge it in court.
Supporters say this new law will guarantee that all districts will be involved in the legislative process, not just the more populated districts.
The law requires signature gatherers to collect six percent of signatures from registered voters in all 35 of Idaho’s legislative district, increasing the number of districts from the current 18. Idaho Matters checks-in with Luke Mayville from Reclaim Idaho, which mounted a successful ballot initiative to expand Medicaid, and who is opposed to the new law. Boise State University Jaclyn Kettler political scientist offers analysis of the politics behind this.
