For years, out-of-state billionaires, dark money organizations and national political activists have viewed states like Missouri as targets. They see our Constitution not as a governing document, but as an opportunity to secure political victories they could never achieve through the legislative process.
With enough money, these groups can hire paid petition circulators, flood the airwaves with misleading advertising and spend millions of dollars on campaigns designed to rewrite Missouri’s Constitution. Their goal is simple: overwhelm local voices with outside money.
The threat is not hypothetical. Across the country, well-funded special interests have used ballot initiative campaigns to advance policies that reshape state constitutions without broad public consensus. A supportive vote in a low turnout election can enshrine something with dire policy consequences for decades. In Missouri, much of the funding for ballot initiative campaigns has come from out-of-state donors. Without stronger safeguards, nothing prevents another wave of outside money from attempting to reshape our state’s Constitution.
Missourians should be concerned when billionaire donors from New York, California, Washington, D.C., and elsewhere can spend unlimited sums trying to influence how we farm or use our property. Those donors will never live with the consequences of the policies they promote. Missouri families will.
This is a debate about who controls Missouri’s future. Will it be Missouri citizens, or wealthy outside interests with virtually unlimited resources? Will our Constitution be shaped by the people who live and work here, or by professional political operatives funded by dark money networks hundreds of miles away?
Amendment 4 is a line in the sand. It tells outside billionaires and special-interest groups that Missouri’s Constitution is not for sale. It ensures that any effort to permanently alter our state’s founding document must earn support from Missourians across the state—not just from a handful of population centers targeted by multi-million-dollar advertising campaigns.
Every Missourian who values local control, self-government, private property rights, family farms, hunting, fishing and rural communities should recognize what is at stake. Once a constitutional amendment is adopted, reversing its effects can be difficult, if not impossible.
The question before voters is simple: Who should decide Missouri’s future—Missourians, or the highest bidder?
Before Election Day, ask yourself: What is my plan to vote? Talk with your family, neighbors and friends about the importance of this election, and make sure your voice is heard.
Vote Yes on Amendment 4 on Aug. 4.
