Did the Arkansas Attorney General eventually certify the ballot title for the four-year-term-of-office initiative for justices of the peace?

Subject

AG Griffin substituted and certified the popular name and ballot title for a revised proposal to extend justices of the peace terms from two to four years. He repeated a warning about the proposal's township wording.

Plain-English summary

The AG had rejected an earlier version of David Dinwiddie's proposed amendment in Opinion 2026-022. Dinwiddie revised the proposal and submitted a new popular name and ballot title. In this opinion, the AG substituted and certified both. The opinion does not recite the earlier rejection's grounds or describe the earlier proposal's subject beyond identifying it as a prior version.

Dinwiddie's proposed popular name repeated his proposed ballot title word for word. Because a popular name serves as an identification tool and need not contain the detail required of a ballot title, the AG substituted “The Justice of the Peace Terms of Office Amendment of 2026.”

The AG also found that the resubmitted ballot title scored grade 10.1 on the Flesch-Kincaid measure. Act 602 barred certification of a title above eighth grade. The AG therefore substituted and certified this ballot title: “A constitutional amendment to change the term of office for justice of the peace from two years to four years.” The earlier submitted title had scored grade 18.6; the sponsor's new title had improved but still exceeded the cap.

The AG repeated his warning that “qualified electors of each township” remained in the amendment text. He said a court could find that language misleading. He also enclosed instructions for canvassers and signers that, under A.C.A. § 7-9-108, should precede every petition.

What this means for you

Sponsors and ballot drafters

The AG used his authority to substitute and certify a more suitable popular name when the submitted name repeated the title. He also substituted a ballot title because the sponsor's revised wording still scored above eighth grade. His certification did not withdraw the warning about the measure's township language.

Voters and petition signers

The certified popular name and ballot title are quoted above. The opinion concerns certification of those labels; the AG expressly said his decision was unrelated to the proposal's merits. It does not decide whether the township wording actually changes the method of electing justices of the peace.

Common questions

Q: Did the sponsor's revised title meet the reading-level limit? A: No. It scored grade 10.1. The AG substituted and certified a title that complied with Act 602.

Q: Why did the AG replace the popular name?
A: The sponsor used the same text for the popular name and ballot title. The AG said a popular name is an identification tool and substituted a more suitable one.

Q: Did certification settle the township-language concern? A: No. The AG repeated his warning from Opinion 2026-022 that a court could find the phrase “qualified electors of each township” misleading. He made no finding about its eventual effect.

Q: What petition instructions did the AG mention?
A: Under A.C.A. § 7-9-108, instructions informing canvassers and signers of constitutional privileges and penalties must precede every petition. The AG enclosed a copy for incorporation before circulation.

Background and statutory framework

The opinion incorporates the review standards from Opinion 2026-022. Here the AG used A.C.A. § 7-9-107(d)(1) to substitute and certify a popular name and ballot title. He explained that Act 602 bars a ballot title above eighth grade under the Flesch-Kincaid formula. The sponsor's 10.1-grade title exceeded that limit, so the AG supplied compliant wording. The opinion also cites A.C.A. § 7-9-108 for the petition-instruction requirement.

Citations

• Statutes: A.C.A. § 7-9-107(d)(1); A.C.A. § 7-9-108.
• Cases: Stiritz v. Martin, 2018 Ark. 281, 556 S.W.3d 523; Pafford v. Hall, 217 Ark. 734, 233 S.W.2d 72 (1950).

Source

• Official opinion search: https://arkansasag.gov/divisions/opinions-foia/attorney-general-opinions-search/

Original opinion text

TIM GRIFFIN
ATTORNEY GENERAL

Opinion No. 2026-030

April 2, 2026

David E. Dinwiddie
8608 Princeton Pike
Pine Bluff, Arkansas 71602

Dear Mr. Dinwiddie:

I am writing in response to your request, made under A.C.A. § 7-9-107, that I certify the popular name and ballot title for a proposed constitutional amendment. In Opinion No. 2026-022, I rejected a prior version of your proposed initiated amendment to the Arkansas Constitution. You have now revised the language of your proposal and submitted it for certification.

My decision to certify or reject a popular name and ballot title is unrelated to my view of the proposed measure’s merits. I am not authorized to consider the measure’s merits when considering certification.

1. Request. Under A.C.A. § 7-9-107, you have asked me to certify the following popular name
   and ballot title for a proposed initiated amendment to the Arkansas Constitution:

                                    Popular Name
   
   A PROPOSED CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT CHANGING THE TERM
     OF OFFICE FOR JUSTICE OF THE PEACE FROM TWO (2) YEARS TO
                          FOUR (4) YEARS.
   
                                      Ballot Title
   
   A PROPOSED CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT CHANGING THE TERM
     OF OFFICE FOR JUSTICE OF THE PEACE FROM TWO (2) YEARS TO
                          FOUR (4) YEARS.
   

2. Rules governing my review. In Opinion No. 2026-022, issued in response to your first
   submission for review and certification, I explained the rules and legal standards that govern my review of popular names and ballot titles. I rely on those same rules and legal standards here and incorporate them by reference.

                        BOB R. BROOKS JR. JUSTICE BUILDING
                            101 WEST CAPITOL AVENUE
                          LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS 72201
   

   David E. Dinwiddie
   Opinion No. 2026-030
   Page 2

3. Application to your popular name. Your popular name contains the same language as the
   ballot title. Because a popular name “is an identification tool,”1 it “need not have the same detailed information as is required for the ballot title, else there would be no difference between the two.”2 Thus, I am substituting and certifying a “more suitable” popular name.3 The popular name provided below is substituted and certified for your proposed constitutional amendment.

4. Application to your ballot title. In Opinion No. 2026-022, I noted that Act 602 prohibits me
   from certifying ballot titles that are above an eighth-grade reading level under the Flesch- Kincaid Level formula, and the ballot title you had originally submitted ranked at grade 18.6. In this current submission, the ballot title ranks at grade 10.1. Therefore, I have substituted and certified a revised ballot title that complies with Act 602.

5. Substitution and certification. With the above changes incorporated, the following popular
   name and ballot title are substituted and certified:

                                              Popular Name
   
                  The Justice of the Peace Terms of Office Amendment of 2026
   
                                                Ballot Title
   
      A constitutional amendment to change the term of office for justice of the peace
      from two years to four years
   

In Opinion No. 2026-022, I cautioned you concerning a potential ambiguity arising from the proposed amendment’s recitation of the phrase, “qualified electors of each township.” Because such language remains in your current submission, I rely on the same warnings and legal standards contained in Opinion No. 2026-022 and incorporate them by reference. A court could find that your “township” language in the proposed measure is misleading.

Under A.C.A. § 7-9-108, instructions to canvassers and signers must precede every petition, informing them of the privileges granted by the Arkansas Constitution and the associated penalties for violations. I have included a copy of the instructions that should be incorporated into your petition before circulation.

1
Stiritz v. Martin, 2018 Ark. 281, 3–4, 556 S.W.3d 523, 527.
2
Pafford v. Hall, 217 Ark. 734, 739, 233 S.W.2d 72, 74–75 (1950).
3
See A.C.A. § 7-9-107(d)(1) (authorizing the Attorney General to “substitute and certify a more suitable and correct ballot title and popular name for each amendment or act”). David E. Dinwiddie Opinion No. 2026-030 Page 3

Assistant Attorney General William R. Olson prepared this opinion, which I hereby approve.

Sincerely,

TIM GRIFFIN
Attorney General