Did the Missouri AG approve the form of Winston Apple's 2019 Article VIII initiative petition on ranked-choice voting (file 2020-101)?
Plain-English summary
Winston Apple filed three parallel initiative petitions in late July 2019 (numbered 2020-101, 2020-102, 2020-103) addressing different election-system reforms. Petition 2020-101 would amend Article VIII of the Missouri Constitution to establish ranked-choice voting for federal and statewide offices.
In ranked-choice voting (also called instant-runoff voting), voters rank candidates in order of preference. If no candidate has a majority of first-choice votes, the lowest finisher is eliminated and that candidate's votes are redistributed to the voters' next-ranked choice. Maine has used the system for federal elections since 2018; Alaska adopted it for state and federal offices in 2020.
Under § 116.332 RSMo, the Secretary of State sends each filed petition to the AG for a "sufficiency as to form" review. AG Schmitt's letter here approves the form of petition 2020-101. Form approval is structural; it does not endorse the policy and it does not bind the Secretary of State, who retains final approval authority.
This is the form-review step that came before the fiscal-note review (177-2019, August 28) and the summary-statement review (180-2019, August 29) for the same petition.
Currency note
This opinion was issued in 2019. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.
Common questions
Q: What is ranked-choice voting?
A: Voters rank candidates in order of preference rather than picking just one. If no candidate has more than 50% of first-choice votes, the candidate in last place is eliminated. Each ballot for that eliminated candidate counts toward the voter's next-ranked choice. The process repeats until one candidate has a majority.
Q: Why Article VIII?
A: Article VIII governs suffrage and elections, which is the right home for vote-counting rules.
Q: Who has final authority on form?
A: The Secretary of State, John R. Ashcroft at the time. § 116.332 expressly reserves "final authority to approve or reject" to him.
Q: How does this connect to Apple's other August 2019 petitions?
A: All three Apple petitions are election-system reforms but target different mechanisms. Petition 2020-101 (this one) changes how votes are tallied (ranked-choice voting). Petition 2020-102 changes how legislative seats are allocated (proportional representation). Petition 2020-103 changes how voter-passed statutes interact with the legislature (initiative protection).
Background and statutory framework
Chapter 116 RSMo lays out the initiative-petition pipeline. This opinion sits at step 2:
- Proponent files the petition with the Secretary of State.
- AG reviews sufficiency as to form under § 116.332 RSMo (this opinion).
- State Auditor prepares a fiscal note; AG reviews under § 116.175.4 RSMo.
- Secretary of State drafts a summary statement; AG reviews under § 116.334 RSMo.
- Petition certified for circulation.
Citations and references
Statutes: § 116.332 RSMo (the operative provision); § 116.175 RSMo (fiscal-note pipeline); § 116.334 RSMo (summary-statement pipeline); § 116.050 RSMo (drafting requirements).
Companion opinions on the same petition (2020-101): 177-2019 (fiscal note review), 180-2019 (summary statement review).
Sister Apple August 2019 petitions: 165-2019 / 178-2019 / 181-2019 (petition 2020-102, proportional representation); 166-2019 / 179-2019 / 182-2019 (petition 2020-103, initiative protection).
Source
- Landing page: https://ago.mo.gov/other-resources/ag-opinions/
- Original PDF: https://ago.mo.gov/wp-content/uploads/attachments/164-2019.pdf?sfvrsn=2
Original opinion text
ATTORNEY GENERAL OF MISSOURI
ERIC SCHMITT
August 2, 2019
OPINION LETTER NO. 164-2019
The Honorable John R. Ashcroft
Missouri Secretary of State
James C. Kirkpatrick State Information Center
600 West Main Street
Jefferson City, MO 65101
Dear Secretary Ashcroft:
This opinion letter responds to your request dated July 25, 2019,
for our review under § 116.332, RSMo, of the sufficiency as to form of
an initiative petition to amend Article VIII of the Missouri Constitution
submitted by Winston Apple (2020-101).
We approve the petition as to form, but § 116.332 gives the Secretary of
State final authority to approve or reject the petition. Therefore, our approval
of the form of the petition does not preclude you from rejecting the petition.
Because our review of the petition is simply for the purpose of
determining sufficiency as to form, the fact that we do not reject the petition
is not to be construed as a determination that the petition is sufficient as to
substance. Likewise, because our review is mandated by statute, no action
that we take with respect to such review should be construed as an
endorsement of the petition or of the objectives of its proponents, or the expression
of any view respecting the adequacy or inadequacy of the petition generally.
Very truly yours,
ERIC S. SCHMITT
Attorney General
Supreme Court Building
207 W. High Street
P.O. Box 899
Jefferson City, MO 65102
Phone: (573) 751-3321
Fax: (573) 751-0774
www.ago.mo.gov
OP-2019-0189