On August 5, supporters of an Arkansas initiative petition sued the Secretary of State for rejecting the completed petition.  The Secretary of State had rejected the petition because the sheets showed the title of the initiative was “The Ballot Measure Rights Amendment of 2026.”  But the Secretary of State, whose job it is to assign titles, had earlier determined that the measure should be the “The Arkansas Ballot Measure Rights Amendment.”

The lawsuit is Hanna v Jester, cv-26-543.  The initiative provides that when voters approve an initiative, the legislature cannot later repeal or amend the contests of the initiative, without another vote of the people.  Supporters had gathered almost 200,000 signatures, twice the number required.