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Missouri Passes Campaign Finance Amendment

Missourians passed Amendment 1, otherwise known as Clean Missouri, to add it to the state constitution Tuesday.

61 percent of Missourians voted yes – meaning changes will be made to Missouri’s redistricting, lobbying and campaign finance laws.

“So what Amendment one does is it cracks down on lobbyists. It says no more expensive lobbyist gifts to legislators,” said Benjamin Singer is the Communications Director for Clean Missouri, a group supporting the amendment.

The amendment tightens regulations about gifts lawmakers are allowed to accept from lobbyists.

“We are capping any gift at five dollars, a cup of coffee. The same as what a constituent back home could afford,” Singer said.

Lawmakers will also be subject a mandatory waiting period of two years after the end of their term before becoming a lobbyist. They will also be required to comply with state open-record laws.

“Missourians can expect to see your legislators paying a lot more attentions to the folks back home. And not just to big donors and lobbyists in Jefferson City,” Singer said.

“We expect there to be more competitive races. We expect city and county lines to be followed whenever possible for house maps. We expect Missouri will become a national leader in protecting minority representation in the legislature,” Singer said.

Part of that change to districts include creating a nonpartisan state demographer to propose maps as a precaution against partisan gerrymandering.