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Amendment E: Expanding the state constitution’s scope beyond men • South Dakota Searchlight [1]
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Date: 2024-10-07
The South Dakota Constitution includes a 135-year-old assumption that everybody worth mentioning in the document is a man, but voters could choose to modernize that language.
Amendment E is one of seven statewide questions on the Nov. 5 general election ballot. It would replace male pronouns in the constitution such as “he,” “him” and “his” with neutral words and phrases such as “the governor,” “the lieutenant governor,” “the officer,” “the elector,” “the accused,” and so on.
7 for ’24: SD’s ballot questions This story is the first in a series explaining the seven statewide questions on the Nov. 5 general election ballot.
Amendments to the constitution require voter approval. Legislators voted last year to place the amendment on this year’s ballot. The vote was 35-0 in the Senate and 58-12 in the House.
Sen. Erin Tobin, R-Winner, was the bill’s prime sponsor. She also submitted the proponent statement for the official ballot-question pamphlet.
“South Dakota has a long history of strong female representation in all three branches of government, and the constitution should accurately reflect these esteemed members of our government,” Tobin wrote.
One of the 12 no votes in the House came from Rep. Liz May, R-Kyle. She wrote the opposition statement for the ballot-question pamphlet.
“The reference to ‘he’ in our constitution is simply a singular pronoun,” May wrote. “The historic use of generic male pronouns in our constitution is proper style and form and clearly does not exclude or hinder women from holding public office.”
Similar legislation last year changed male pronouns to neutral words and phrases in the state’s codified laws, which are not part of the constitution and don’t require voter approval to amend. Lawmakers approved that legislation by wide margins and Kristi Noem — the state’s first female governor — signed it into law.
While signing that bill, Noem, a Republican, voiced support for updating the constitution.
“Every little girl in South Dakota should realize that she can grow up to do whatever she wants to do – to be whoever she wants to be,” Noem said. “We are fixing our laws and South Dakota Constitution so that they reflect the fact that women and men can both attain offices like governor.”
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