Constitutional Convention delegates meet inside the State House in 1986 — the last such convention approved by Rhode Island voters. Labor leaders want the General Assembly to remove the requirement that asks voters every 10 years if the state should hold a convention. (Rhode Island State Archives)
Rhode Island labor leaders are looking for at least one state lawmaker to help them finally get rid of the decennial ballot question that nearly 63% of voters rejected in Tuesday’s general election, the highest opposition ever in 40 years.
Ballot Question 1 asked voters if the state should hold a constitutional convention. The question comes up every 10 years in a year ending in 4 because of an amendment that dates back to the 1973 constitutional convention.
Getting rid of it would have to be through either an amendment proposed through a constitutional convention or the General Assembly can place a referendum question on the ballot during any election year.
Voters reject Question 1 asking to hold a constitutional convention
Rhode Island AFL-CIO Patrick Crowley, whose organization was part of the coalition of 37 unions and civil liberties groups that led the campaign urging voters to reject Question 1, said Thursday afternoon that a discussion about lining up support to eliminate the constitutional question was likely to happen that night during the Institute for Labor Studies and Research 42nd Annual Awards dinner at Bally’s Twin River casino in Lincoln.
“We’re hoping that it will be someone that is willing to champion this from start to finish,” Crowley said.
The ideal lead sponsor would be someone who sits on the House or Senate judiciary committees, which are responsible for placing the convention question and any likely proposal to repeal it, Crowley said. There were 15 members on the House panel during the 2024 legislative session and 10 on the Senate’s.
House Judiciary Chairman Robert Craven, a North Kingstown Democrat who co-chaired the bipartisan commission that gathered input for a voter information guide about the convention question over the summer, isn’t interested.
Craven told Rhode Island Current he is open to listening to the arguments against the ballot measure but felt the constitutional mandate serves as a good exercise to find out what issues are most important to Rhode Islanders.
“And I think that’s worthwhile,” he said.
Senate Judiciary Chairwoman Dawn Euer, a Newport Democrat who served as the commission’s other co-chair, said she expects her committee to look at the possibility of the proposal to do away with the question. But she was noncommittal when asked if she would be the one to introduce the resolution.
“I actually haven’t thought about it,” Euer said. “But that could change, I guess.”
House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi said he is open to any lawmaker introducing legislation to do away with the question and going through the public hearing process. But he said the likelihood such a bill would go to the floor in 2025 is unlikely given such a change would have to be approved in an election year.
“It’s the type of stuff that would be introduced and debated,” Shekarchi said about prioritizing it for the upcoming legislative session. “But I don’t want that to be a precursor for no one to put anything in — I am all ears.”
Shekarchi was the most prominent Rhode Island Democrat to come out in opposition to Question 1 though he waited until less than two weeks before Election Day. But he wasn’t always opposed to conventional conventions. Shekarchi even ran to be one of Warwick’s delegates for the 1986 constitutional convention as a 23-year-old law school student because he said was “hungry and thought he could change the world.”
One of five candidates who ran as a delegate for his legislative district, Shekarchi came in second to retired FBI agent Constant L. Simonini.
Shekarchi said his opposition stems from his concern that out-of-state dark money groups will try to influence changes to Rhode Island’s constitution.
“Forty years ago, nobody from Washington D.C. would ever consider dropping $1 million on an issue in Rhode Island to move the needle,” he said. “Today, there’s a very distinct possibility — I see it at the State House.”
The only significant money spent on Question 1 in this election cycle was through Rhode Island Citizens for Responsible Government. The coalition of 37 civil rights and labor organizations spent roughly $175,000 on mailers, radio, and social media ads urging voters to reject the ballot question, according to filings with the Rhode Island Board of Elections.
Rhode Island’s Republican Party finally came out in favor of holding a convention in late October. The only campaign in support of Question 1 was a video and text message blitz produced by former GOP national committeeman Steve Frias — along with the occasional pro-convention op-ed, including one from Frias.
Whoever sponsors the resolution, Common Cause Rhode Island Executive Director John Marion said it’s unlikely the General Assembly would ever approve a measure to remove the convention question.
“It’s been a part of our constitution for almost 50 years,” he said. “And it could be useful at some future a point if the electorate ever feels the need to change the state’s constitution.”
Too complex a question?
On Tuesday, 62.5% of voters rejected Question 1 while 37.5% voted yes, the biggest percentage point spread in the past four decades. Voters rejected a constitutional convention by 55.1% and 52% in 2014 and 2004 respectively. In 1994, 59.5% of voters opposed the constitutional convention question.
In 1984, voters had approved the constitutional convention 53.82% to 46.18%.
The overwhelming defeat came as no surprise to Marion. The reason, he said, is getting clear information to voters explaining what a constitutional convention is for remains a challenge.
“When voters don’t have a lot of information, they tend to vote against,” Marion said. “Given that there was virtually no pro-campaign and a well-funded anti-campaign, I’m not surprised that a large number of undecideds ultimately, when faced with the choice, clearly chose to vote against.”
Voters understand issue-based ballot measures like bond referenda and basic policy questions like legalizing recreational cannabis, but when it comes to process-driven measures such as the convention question, their eyes can glaze over, said Community College of Rhode Island Associate Professor of Political Science Matthew Ulricksen.
“People just get lost in the complexity and detail,” Ulricksen said in an interview. “And if they tend not to understand it, their inclination is to reject it.”
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