Sunflower State voters have rejected a plan to fundamentally remake the Kansas Supreme Court — a longtime priority for Republican lawmakers who placed the constitutional amendment proposal on the ballot and framed the urgency of its passage in dire terms.
The proposal, which called for overhauling the judicial selection process and directly electing Supreme Court justices, was decisively turned back on Tuesday.
The rejection of the amendment proposal is a resounding win for its opponents, many of whom viewed it as an insincere gambit designed to bring to heel a stubbornly independent court that has protected the right to an abortion and forced lawmakers to spend more on public schools.
Kansas United for Impartial Courts campaign manager Leo Espinoza began comments to cheers and applause during a watch party in the Overland Park Sheraton, as early vote results showed strong opposition to the amendment.
“I could not be prouder of the campaign that we run over the last several months,” Espinoza said. “We have built this campaign to protect our Supreme Court to make sure that we put the Constitution over corruption. And tonight we’re going to celebrate.”
