Arkansas Advocate: Signatures submitted for ballot measure on initiative process

 Protestors sign petitions at the No Kings March in Little Rock, Arkansas on Saturday, March 28, 2026. | Arkansas Advocate photo by Katie Adkins

By ANDREW DeMILLO and ANTOINETTE GRAJEDA | Arkansas Advocate

Arkansas officials are reviewing thousands of signatures submitted in favor of a proposal to preserve the state’s initiative and referendum process to determine if it’ll qualify for the November ballot

Protect AR Rights submitted 108,837 signatures Friday to the secretary of state’s office for its proposal, the Arkansas Ballot Measure Rights Amendment of 2026. The measure needs at least 90,704 valid signatures from registered voters to get on the ballot.

“Today’s submission is a testament to what people can accomplish when they come together to defend democracy,” Dara Gaines, field director for the campaign, said in a statement Friday. 

The secretary of state’s office has hired 15 people to assist in reviewing the petitions, spokesperson Samantha Boyd said. Reviewing the petitions could take a few weeks, she said. 

Protect AR Rights is one of three groups that collected signatures this spring for proposed constitutional amendments, but the only one that submitted petitions. The group said it will gather additional signatures if it qualifies for a cure period.

Both Protect AR Rights and Save AR Democracy proposed constitutional amendments to strengthen the state’s direct democracy process, which allows Arkansans to propose laws or constitutional amendments and place them on the ballot for a statewide vote.

Arkansas is one of 24 states that allows citizen-led initiatives. The majority-Republican Legislature has implemented restrictions on the initiative process in recent years, but some of the new laws have been blocked by federal courts. 

If approved by voters, the Protect AR Rights proposal would prohibit the Legislature from repealing or changing a constitutional amendment approved by voters. It would also enact several new protections to the initiative process. 

The supporters of the amendment argue it’s needed to combat state laws that make the initiative and referendum process more difficult. Proponents of the laws have said the restrictions are needed to protect the process’ integrity.

The third group, For AR Kids, proposed an education-focused constitutional amendmentthat would require private schools receiving state funds under Arkansas’ school voucher programto meet the same standards as public schools. The measure also called for universal access to early childhood education for 3- and 4-year-olds and education support for students living in poverty.

The group fell short of its signature goal, but said it succeeded in raising awareness about the concerns about the voucher program.

“The Arkansas Educational Rights Amendment may not appear on this year’s ballot, but the issues it sought to address have not disappeared,” said April Reisma, president of the Arkansas Education Association and the For AR Kids campaign.

For AR Families, a coalition of groups supporting the voucher program, had campaigned against the proposal and ran TV ads around the state. The coalition called the proposal failing to make the ballot “a decisive victory for Arkansas families, students, and taxpayers.”

The three ballot measure groups were part of a lawsuit challenging state laws restricting the petitioning process. A federal judge last week declared some of those laws unconstitutional and left in place a preliminary injunction that temporarily blocked some of the legislation. A trial in the suit is scheduled for July 28. 

Arkansas Advocate is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.