The Con-Con Doesn’t Pass the Smell Test

Guest Opinion

Do you smell that? That’s the stench of corporate money oozing through Michigan politics.

I bet by now you’ve seen dozens, if not hundreds of political ads for candidates the past few weeks. In this year’s general election, we’re not just electing a new U.S. senator, governor, secretary of state, attorney general, and Michigan Supreme Court candidates. Michiganders also have the chance to vote on two proposals this year, and one of them would change our state’s constitution as we know it.

Every 16 years, Michigan law requires that a question automatically appears on the November General Election ballot. Proposal 1 this year asks voters whether they want to hold a constitutional convention (Con-Con) to rewrite the state constitution. That may sound like a good idea on its face, but when you consider what the process looks like, it becomes difficult to justify.

A Con-Con is a complicated process, but here’s how it works. Every Michigan House and Senate District would elect a delegate in special Primary and General Elections for representation at a Con-Con. Here’s where it gets tricky: Campaign finance rules would not apply to the election of delegates. That means there is no limit on campaign donations. Without limits, billionaires and corporations would be free to overhaul the progress Michiganders have made in our constitution.

The convention is open-ended with all guidelines decided by the delegates. This means that delegates could decide to not change anything or to rewrite the entire constitution. Proposal 1 would simply open up a Pandora’s box and allow for special interests to take away our freedoms, like the right to a legal abortion and access to the ballot.

If Michiganders currently want to make changes to the constitution, they can do so through citizen-led ballot measures. That’s so that the process is in the hands of Michigan voters to decide whether to adopt proposed amendments to change the constitution. It’s far from perfect, but it’s the surest way to ensure everyone who wants to have a voice is heard.

Over the past few elections, Michiganders have made strides to expand our rights using ballot initiatives, including legalizing marijuana, protecting abortion access, and expanding voting rights like same-day voter registration and no reason absentee voting. These proposals won the majority of Michigan voters. A Con-Con would put these hard-fought, popular rights in jeopardy while shifting power away from the people of Michigan to wealthy corporate lobbyists and Lansing insiders.

Right now, powerful, wealthy interests are working hard to flood the system and silence the voices of Michigan communities. We’re seeing this now with AI data centers; deep pocketed corporations are pushing energy and water sucking hyperscale facilities onto us. There is a disturbing pattern of wealthy interests calling the shots, the community not having a say, and then getting saddled with all the negative impacts.

Now, imagine this all playing out at the state level. A constitutional convention will allow Big Tech to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to get their delegates elected, and you’d better believe they’d try to limit strict, commonsense guardrails on data centers, allowing them to pollute our water and air and pass high utility costs onto Michiganders. Most of us would agree that regulating AI, as well as data centers and their impact on our air, water, and energy, deserves careful and thoughtful public debate.

A constitutional convention would give Big Tech companies the upper hand in shaping policy decisions while everyday Michiganders get left in the dark.

The coalition proposing a “no” vote on Proposal 1 is diverse and broad, representing businesses, unions, religious organizations, conservatives and progressives, and environmental groups. Many of these groups disagree on most issues, but can agree that having a Con-Con is too risky.

It’s clear that the vast majority of Michiganders think that corporate money has too much influence in state politics. Recent polling from Lake Effect done by Progress Michigan finds that nine in 10 Michiganders are concerned about the influence of corporate spending and wealthy donors on our state’s elections. This overwhelming public opinion should be a wake-up call for everyone across Michigan to recognize the flaws in the Con-Con process.

Luckily, you have a chance to make your voice heard on this issue on or before Nov. 3. Go to MichiganVoting.org to find out more information about how you can cast your ballot.

Justin Mendoza (he/him) is the executive director of Progress Michigan, a nonprofit communications advocacy and government watchdog organization.

View On Our Website