Constitutional Amendment L: 60% Vote Requirement for Constitutional Amendments
Statewide — all of South Dakota
General election · Tuesday, November 3, 2026
- The South Dakota Legislature referred this amendment to the Nov. 3, 2026 ballot as House Joint Resolution 5003 (2025 session), prime sponsored by Rep. John Hughes and Sen. Sue Peterson. The House passed it 61-5 on Jan. 22, 2025 and the Senate 29-4 on March 10, 2025, according to the Legislature's bill record. It would apply to both citizen-initiated and legislatively referred constitutional amendments, according to Ballotpedia News, which counts five states (California, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah) with certified vote-threshold measures on the 2026 ballot.[3][2]
- South Dakota voters rejected a 55% threshold (Amendment X) in 2018 and a 60% threshold for amendments with fiscal impacts (Amendment C) in 2022, according to the opponents' statement in the state pamphlet.[1]
The question on the ballot
An Amendment to the South Dakota Constitution Requiring that a Proposed Constitutional Amendment or Revision Receive an Affirmative Vote of Sixty Percent of the Votes Cast.[1]
Attorney General explanation: Currently a proposed constitutional amendment or revision becomes part of the Constitution if approved by a majority of the votes cast. This proposed Constitutional Amendment increases the number of votes required: if passed, further constitutional amendments must receive an affirmative vote of sixty percent of the votes cast to be implemented. The text is one page long containing two sections.[1]
A YES vote means
Vote “Yes” to adopt the amendment.
A NO vote means
Vote “No” to leave the Constitution as it is.
The law today
Per the Attorney General's explanation, a proposed constitutional amendment or revision must be submitted to the voters and currently becomes part of the Constitution if approved by a majority of the votes cast.[1]
Arguments made for
- Statement by Rep. John Hughes, Dale Bartscher (South Dakota Right to Life) and Nathan Sanderson (South Dakota Retailers): “Currently, South Dakota’s Constitution can be changed by a simple majority of votes cast. Amendment L raises that threshold to sixty percent.”[1]
- Same statement: “With Amendment L, only changes with broad, strong support from South Dakotans become part of our framework of governance.”[1]
On record in support
- Save Our South Dakota Constitution, a ballot question committee formed to support Amendment L; Rep. John Hughes (R-Sioux Falls), the resolution's sponsor, is a member, per South Dakota Searchlight.[4]
- Rep. John Hughes, Dale Bartscher (South Dakota Right to Life) and Nathan Sanderson (South Dakota Retailers), who signed the pro statement in the Secretary of State's pamphlet.[1]
- Protecting South Dakota Kids and South Dakota Family Voice, which Hughes told Searchlight are part of the supporting coalition alongside South Dakota Retailers Association and South Dakota Right to Life.[4]
On record in opposition
- L-No, the ballot question committee formed to oppose Amendment L; spokesperson Zach Nistler.[4]
- Chase Jensen (Dakota Rural Action) and Ryan Rolfs (South Dakota Education Association), who signed the con statement in the Secretary of State's pamphlet.[1][5]
- League of Women Voters of South Dakota and South Dakota Farmers Union, which Nistler described to Searchlight as part of the coalition funding L-No.[4]
- The Fairness Project, a Washington, D.C. nonprofit, which reported advertising spending against Amendment L.[4][5]
Campaign money
As of Oct. 2, 2026, the Secretary of State's website listed $260,000 in communication expenditures against Amendment L by the nonprofit The Fairness Project. Ballot question committee finance reports were due Oct. 19, 2026 and were not retrieved, so committee totals for both sides are not shown.[4][5]
Research notes & limits
Title, explanation and effect of a vote are the Attorney General's text as printed in the Secretary of State's 2026 Ballot Question Pamphlet; the pro and con statements are the authors' own statements printed there (the pamphlet says the Secretary of State is not responsible for their accuracy). The pamphlet prints no fiscal note for this amendment. Each quoted item is a single sentence or adjacent sentences of one pamphlet statement. Vote counts are the recorded chamber passage votes on the Legislature's action log (the Senate amended the resolution; the log shows no separate recorded House concurrence vote).
Sources · 5
Researched 2026-10-19. Green citations are official government records.
- 1.2026 Ballot Question Pamphlet · South Dakota Secretary of State Official record
- 2.Five states certify measures on vote thresholds for ballot initiatives and amendments · Ballotpedia News · 2025-12-08 Reference
- 3.HJR 5003 (2025): bill actions and votes · South Dakota Legislature · 2026-10-19 Official record
- 4.Money begins to flow in fight over threshold for South Dakota constitutional changes · South Dakota Searchlight · 2026-10-02 News report
- 5.Protecting the state constitution, or protecting voters' right to change it: Amendment L explained · South Dakota Searchlight · 2026-10-14 News report