CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – On Sept. 10, Respect Missouri Voters will begin gathering signatures across the state to place a constitutional amendment on the November 2026 ballot to ban legislators from attacking the will of the people.
Launch parties will be held throughout Missouri, where volunteers can pick up supplies to begin gathering signatures. The local party is at Cape Girardeau Library in Cape Girardeau on Wednesday, Sept. 10 at 6 p.m. You can find information and RSVP at respectMOvoters.org/launch-day.
The Respect Missouri Voters amendment would ban politicians from:
- Overturning initiatives that voters have already passed,
- Attacking citizens’ ability to use the initiative process, and
- Deceiving voters with confusing ballot language.
“It’s time to turn massive volunteer energy into massive action,” said Benjamin Singer, co-founder of Respect Missouri Voters. “We need every voter who wants to ban politicians from attacking the will of the people to help gather 300,000 signatures in just a few months. We’re a volunteer-driven movement. Come on out to our launch parties and let’s save democracy together.”
Volunteers are asked to gather signatures for a minimum of 2 hours a week for several weeks.
Turning volunteer energy into action
Respect Missouri Voters is a cross-partisan, volunteer-driven coalition that has been building support through town halls and events, recruiting 3,000 volunteers and raising an initial $350,000 to cover expenses.
“Missourians deserve a government that respects their voices,” said Toni Easter, co-founder of Respect Missouri Voters. “This amendment will make sure that politicians can’t overturn initiatives with partisan attacks, now or in the future.”
What led to the Respect MO Voters Initiative?
This year, legislators worked to overturn two initiatives voters approved last year: paid sick leave and women’s healthcare. The legislature also passed Senate Bill 22, commonly referred to as the “Let Politicians Lie Act” which makes it easier for politicians to put deceptive language on the ballot.
These actions add to the long record of Missouri politicians overturning initiatives passed by Missouri voters. Clean Missouri, an anti-corruption and redistricting reform initiative passed in 2018, was gutted by lawmakers in 2020 through misleading ballot language. Similarly, the Puppy Mill Cruelty Prevention Act, approved by voters in 2010, was repealed by the legislature the following year.
Endorsements across the political spectrum
The movement has already earned support from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, former U.S. Sen. John Danforth (R-MO), Missouri National Organization of Women, Veterans for All Voters, Metropolitan Congregations United, the Missouri NAACP, Show Me Integrity, St. Louis Association of Community Organizations, former House Minority Leader Crystal Quade (D-Springfield), and former State Senator Bob Johnson (R-Lee’s Summit).
How to get involved
Missourians can learn more about the Sept. 10 launch day events and how to get involved at respectMOvoters.org/launch-day.