Are you passionate about the legality of hunting bears using jelly doughnuts? Or is minimum wage the issue that pushes you to do your civic duty? On Election Day, a list of odd-ball referendums will be on the ballot alongside the all-important question of which party controls the Senate.
The Daily Beast compiled a list of some of the zanier issues coming to a vote this fall:
On the top of the list is bear baiting. Voters in Maine will determine if dogs, traps and bait can be used to hunt bears in the state. Some claim that the use of bait, often old doughnuts or other baked goods, has led to an unsustainable increase in the bear population. Others argue that hunting is the best means of managing the bear population.
It’s a sticky situation.
In other states, referendums are covering the trifecta of American politics: guns, drugs and abortion. Washington is deciding whether to become hazed and confused, by becoming the third state to legalize pot. Meanwhile, Alaska voters will vote on whether to decriminalize the drug, while Florida is deciding on the issue of medial marijuana.
Alabama voters will vote to whether to enshrine the right to bear arms in their state constitution, subjecting any contest of the right to strict judicial scrutiny and protecting it “from potential interference by international treaty and foreign law.” Meanwhile, Washington voters will vote on two contradictory propositions. One require background checks for all gun purchases. The other would forbid any background checks more stringent than those required by federal law.
Colorado, Tennessee and North Dakota voters will grapple with some portion of the abortion question. Colorado voters will decide if they favor a “personhood” amendment, which supporters claim would allow criminals to be prosecuted for the death of a fetus. The laws’ detractors claim that it is a backdoor means of restricting abortion rights. North Dakota has a proposed constitutional amendment stating that life begins at conception. Tennessee voters will decide on an amendment preventing courts from overturning abortion restrictions or bans.
With an additional five states proposing referendums on minimum wage, it’s set to be a lengthy ballot this fall.
