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Changes To Colorado's Constitution Will Be Harder Now

DENVER (CBS4) - Voters have approved an amendment to Colorado's constitution that will actually make it harder to add more amendments in the future.

amendment-71

Amendment 71 passed by a margin of 57 percent to 43 percent.

amendment-71

Colorado's constitution has more than 150 amendments with some of them conflicting and unconstitutional. The U.S. Constitution has 27 amendments.

Amendment 71 changes two things: it requires 55 percent of voters, not 50 percent, to pass a constitutional initiative; and signatures from at least 2 percent of voters in each of the state's 35 senate districts. That will give more say to rural Colorado but also gives veto power to any one district.

Amendment 71 had bipartisan support moving into Election Day. According to CBS4 Political Specialist Shaun Boyd's Reality Check on an ad aired by supporters, some changes that have been made to the state's constitution in the past have locked in some problematic amendments with unintended consequences. That ad featured Republican and former Attorney General John Suthers and Democrat and former Denver Mayor Wellington Webb.

There are two forms of ballot initiatives -- statutory and constitutional. Both require the same number of signatures to get on the ballot and a simple majority to pass. The difference? Lawmakers can amend statutory measures but only voters can make changes to those ingrained in the constitution.

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