Missouri's First Constitution: Whose Blueprint Was It?

The Missouri Constitution is the state constitution of the U.S. state of Missouri. The first Missouri Constitution was drafted in 1820 and was in effect from 1821 to 1865. The territory of Missouri first applied for statehood in 1817 and was admitted as a slave state in 1821. The first Missouri Constitution was modelled after the U.S. Constitution, with a similar preamble: We, the people of Missouri, inhabiting the limits hereinafter designated...

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The first Missouri Constitution

The territory of Missouri first applied for statehood in 1817 and was considered for the opportunity to become a state two years later. Congress debated whether to allow slavery in Missouri, and eventually passed the Missouri Compromise, which allowed Missouri to enter the Union as a slave state. The first Missouri Constitution specifically excluded "free negroes and mulattoes" from the state. This "exclusion clause" initially prevented the US Congress from admitting Missouri to the Union, but it was eventually interpreted in a deliberately vague manner.

The Missouri Compromise

The territory of Missouri first applied for statehood in 1817 or 1818 and was considered for the opportunity to become the 23rd state in the Union two years later. However, controversy arose within Congress over the issue of slavery. Representative James Tallmadge Jr. of New York submitted two amendments to Missouri's request for statehood that included restrictions on slavery. Southerners objected to any bill that imposed federal restrictions on slavery, believing it was a state issue. The debate over Missouri's statehood led to a stalemate in Congress, with the Senate linking the Maine and Missouri bills and making Maine's admission conditional on Missouri entering the Union as a slave state.

In February 1820, the Senate added a provision to the joint statehood bill that, with the exception of Missouri, slavery would be banned in all of the former Louisiana Purchase lands north of the 36°30′ latitude, which ran along Missouri's southern border. On March 3, 1820, the House passed the Senate version of the bill, and President James Monroe signed it into law four days later. The Missouri Compromise was repealed by the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854, which allowed settlers in each territory to decide the issue of slavery for themselves. This sparked violence between pro- and anti-slavery settlers in "Bleeding Kansas". In 1857, the Supreme Court ruled that the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional in the Dred Scott v. Sandford decision, setting the stage for the Civil War.

The second Missouri Constitution

The first Missouri Constitution was drafted in 1820 and was in effect from 1821 to 1865. The second Missouri Constitution was ratified on June 6, 1865, and lasted for 10 years. It was passed by a constitutional convention that was elected in November 1864 and met in January 1865. This second constitution was known as the "Draconian Constitution" due to its loyalty oath provisions, which were later struck down by the US Supreme Court in Cummings v. Missouri (1867).

The third Missouri Constitution was drafted in 1875, 10 years after the second constitution took effect. The fourth and current Missouri Constitution was adopted in 1945 and has been amended numerous times since then. The 1945 constitution includes a preamble that was also used in the 1875 constitution.

The Missouri Constitution is the state constitution of Missouri and is the supreme law formulating the law and government of the state, subject only to the federal Constitution and the people. It guarantees certain rights to crime victims, which the federal constitution does not. It also provides for three branches of government: legislative, executive, and judicial, and sets up local governments in the form of counties and cities.

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The current Missouri Constitution

The current constitution was drafted during the sixth Constitutional Convention, which was approved by voters in 1942. The fourth constitution was drafted in response to the corruption of political "bosses" in the early 20th century, such as Tom Pendergast of Kansas City. The convention met for a year, writing and approving the new constitution, which was then ratified by voters in 1945.

The 1945 constitution begins with a preamble that was also used in the 1875 constitution, which reads:

> "We, the people of Missouri, with profound reverence for the Supreme Ruler of the Universe, and grateful for His goodness, do establish this Constitution for the better government of the state."

Amendments to the Missouri Constitution

The Missouri Constitution is the state constitution of the U.S. state of Missouri. It is the supreme law that formulates the law and government of Missouri, subject only to the federal Constitution and the people. The current Missouri Constitution was ratified in 1945 and has been amended numerous times.

The Missouri Constitution can be amended via three different paths: a citizen-initiated process, a legislative process, and a state constitutional convention. The number of signatures required for an initiated constitutional amendment is based on the number of votes cast for governor in the state's most recent gubernatorial election. Proponents must collect signatures equal to 8% of the gubernatorial vote in two-thirds of Missouri's congressional districts for initiated constitutional amendments. A simple majority vote is required for voter approval.

The Missouri Constitution also provides for an automatic referendum to appear on the ballot every 20 years, starting in 1942, to decide whether to hold a state constitutional convention. The last time this referendum was voted on was in 2022, and the measure did not pass.

In recent years, some amendments to the Missouri Constitution have been controversial and high-profile, including:

• Legalizing commercial gambling in 1993
• Missouri Constitutional Amendment 2 (2004): an amendment prohibiting same-sex marriage
• Missouri Constitutional Amendment 2 (2006): allowing the production of human embryos for stem cell research
• An English-only amendment in 2008
• A constitutional amendment legalizing and regulating medical marijuana in 2018

In 2024, the Missouri Senate passed a bill that made it harder for voters to amend the constitution by initiative petition. The bill required a statewide majority and a majority vote in five out of eight congressional districts to pass a constitutional amendment resulting from an initiative petition or a state convention.

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