NO CITIZEN-LED INITIATIVES ON FLORIDA’S 2026 BALLOT

2026 will be the first election cycle in decades without a voter-initiated proposal on the statewide ballot. According to the Department of State, “ all twenty-two active proposed constitutional amendments by initiative petitions failed to meet the requirements of Florida law to be placed on the November ballot. 

Ballot initiatives give voters direct power to make changes like raising the state minimum wage and restoring voting rights to returning citizens. When zero out of twenty-two initiatives make the ballot, the only way laws change is if politicians in Tallahassee decide to change them.

Governor DeSantis and the Republican supermajority state legislature have made it nearly impossible for grassroots movements to navigate. The new laws signed by Governor DeSantis in 2025 created obstacles for citizen ballot initiatives, and we are currently seeing the consequences of his actions.

Our partner, Southern Poverty Law Center, is challenging the enforcement of this law on the constitutional right of ballot initiative sponsors, petition circulators, and voters in the U.S. Federal courts on Monday, February 9th. We will continue to monitor this case and provide updates.