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1
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The 98th General Assembly of the State of Illinois
3has submitted House Joint Resolution Constitutional Amendment
452, a proposition to amend the Illinois Constitution, to the
5voters of Illinois at the November 2014 general election; and
 
6    WHEREAS, The Illinois Constitution Amendment Act requires
7the General Assembly to prepare a brief explanation of the
8proposed amendment, a brief argument in favor of the amendment,
9a brief argument against the amendment, and the form in which
10the amendment will appear on the ballot, and also requires the
11information to be published and distributed to the electorate;
12therefore, be it
 
13    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
14NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE
15SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that the proposed form of new Section
168 of Article III shall be published as follows:
 
17
"ARTICLE III
18
SUFFRAGE AND ELECTIONS

 
19SECTION 8. VOTER DISCRIMINATION
20    No person shall be denied the right to register to vote or
21to cast a ballot in an election based on race, color,

 

 

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1ethnicity, status as a member of a language minority, national
2origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or income."; and be
3it further
 
4    RESOLVED, That a brief explanation of the proposed
5amendment, a brief argument in favor of the amendment, a brief
6argument against the amendment, and the form in which the
7amendment will appear on the ballot shall be published and
8distributed as follows:

 

 

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1
PROPOSED AMENDMENT
2
TO ADD SECTION 8 TO ARTICLE III
3
OF THE ILLINOIS CONSTITUTION

 
 
 
4
That will be submitted to the voters
5
November 4, 2014

 
 
 
6
This pamphlet includes

 
7
EXPLANATION OF THE PROPOSED AMENDMENT
8
ARGUMENTS IN FAVOR OF THE AMENDMENT
9
ARGUMENTS AGAINST THE AMENDMENT
10
FORM OF BALLOT

 

 

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1To the Electors of the State of Illinois:
 
2The purpose of a state constitution is to establish a structure
3for government and laws. There are three ways to initiate
4change to the Illinois Constitution: (1) a constitutional
5convention may propose changes to any part; (2) the General
6Assembly may propose changes to any part; or (3) a petition
7initiative may propose amendments limited to structural and
8procedural subjects contained in the Legislative Article. The
9people of Illinois must approve any changes to the Constitution
10before they become effective.
 
11The proposed amendment adds a new section to the Suffrage and
12Elections Article of the Illinois Constitution. The section
13would ensure no person could be denied the right to register to
14vote or cast a ballot based on his or her race, color,
15ethnicity, status as a member of a language minority, national
16origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or income. At the
17general election to be held on November 4, 2014, you will be
18called upon to decide whether the proposed amendment should
19become part of the Illinois Constitution.
 
20
EXPLANATION

 
21The proposed amendment would prohibit any law or procedure that
22intentionally discriminates or has an unequal effect upon the

 

 

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1right of a person to register to vote or cast a ballot based on
2the voter's race, color, ethnicity, status as a member of a
3language minority, national origin, religion, sex, sexual
4orientation, or income.
 
5The proposed amendment does not change the requirements for
6voting. A voter must still be a citizen of the United States, a
7permanent resident of Illinois for more than 30 days, and be 18
8years of age.
 
9
Arguments In Favor of the Proposed Amendment

 
10    The proposed amendment is a demonstration that the people
11of Illinois believe all eligible Illinois citizens have a
12fundamental right to vote, and that laws and regulations that
13seek to prohibit eligible Illinois citizens from voting in an
14election should not be tolerated in a civil society. Under the
15amendment, any law or procedure that has a disparate impact
16upon the ability of a person to register to vote or cast a
17ballot based on the voter's race, color, ethnicity, status as a
18member of a language minority, national origin, religion, sex,
19sexual orientation, or income would be subject to strict
20judicial scrutiny.
 
21
Arguments Against the Proposed Amendment

 

 

 

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1    This amendment is not necessary. Many of these protections
2are already provided by federal law. The proponents have not
3identified any instances of voter discrimination in Illinois
4that would justify the creation of a State cause of action. The
5proposed amendment will only serve to increase litigation.
 
6
FORM OF BALLOT

 
7
Proposed Amendment to the 1970 Illinois Constitution
8
Explanation of Amendment

 
9The proposed amendment adds a new section to the Suffrage and
10Elections Article of the Illinois Constitution. The proposed
11amendment would prohibit any law that disproportionately
12affects the rights of eligible Illinois citizens to register to
13vote or cast a ballot based on the voter's race, color,
14ethnicity, status as a member of a language minority, national
15origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or income. You are
16asked to decide whether the proposed amendment should become
17part of the Illinois Constitution.
 
18-------------------------------------------------------------
19       YES            For the proposed addition -
20----------       of Section 8 to Article III
21       NO         of the Illinois Constitution.
22-------------------------------------------------------------