Position on the Voter Eligibility Constitutional Amendment 2026
This is the position of the League of Women Voters of Topeka-Shawnee County based on the position of the League of Women Voters of Kansas. The League Opposes the proposed Kansas Constitutional Amendment on Voter Eligibility Requirements (2025 HCR 5004). We urge voters to Vote NO on the Constitutional Amendment on the November 3, 2026, General Election ballot.
The proposed amendment asks Kansans to add language to the State Constitution that is already the law. The new language would make a subtle but significant change in determining how potential voters are vetted before being allowed to vote. The amendment would shift the Kansas Constitution’s tone from inclusionary, to exclusionary. That shift could interfere with ensuring every eligible citizen’s right to vote.
FACT: The Kansas Constitution currently allows every U.S. citizen aged 18 and older who meet residency requirements to be eligible voters. The amendment would change “every” to “only those.” This seemingly
inconsequential change is a subtle but potentially dangerous distinction.
IMPACT: The proposed language is not harmless. We are concerned that the amendment would make it easier for the Kansas Legislature to revive a documentary proof-of-citizenship law, like the one struck down in federal court
in 2018 (Fish v Kobach) that would have disenfranchised tens of thousands of Kansans. Documentary proof of citizenship could require presenting a US passport, US birth certificate, or US naturalization certificate to register to vote, either for the first time or because of a change in address or name. This could disenfranchise many thousands of eligible Kansans who don’t have ready access to the required documents, including returning veterans, married women, college students, and elderly and low-income voters. Unfortunately, the authors of this proposed amendment have not shared the language of statutes that would implement the new constitutional provision, so voters cannot see the whole picture.
Our Recommendation: Vote No on November 3, 2026.
Click here to view the language on Kansans’ ballots.
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The League of Women Voters of Topeka-Shawnee County is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization. We study issues and take positions that affect voting rights and democracy in our state.
