A Michigan flag waves on the state Capitol plaza | Susan J. Demas
For the fourth time since Michigan’s 1963 constitution went into effect, voters will decide next year whether to hold a convention to amend it.
The initiative to hold a state constitutional convention — informally known as a “Con-Con” — has automatically appeared on the state’s ballot every 16 years since 1978 and is enshrined in the Michigan Constitution’s Article XII, Section 3.
Michigan is one of only 14 states with an automatic constitutional convention provision that does not require a legislative vote to be placed on the ballot.
Michigan has had four constitutions throughout its history. The original document was adopted in 1835, with updates in 1850 and 1908, and a constitution approved in 1963 that is still in effect today.
On this day in 1835: Michigan leader calls a constitutional convention
By the time the question of holding a convention appears on the ballot in November 2026, Michigan will have been without a constitutional convention for 66 years, the longest period in its history.
The three previous times it appeared before Michigan voters under the current Constitution — in 1978, 1994, and 2010 — it was defeated by large margins ranging from more than 2-1 to 3-1.
According to Eric Lupher, president of Michigan’s nonpartisan Citizens Research Council (CRC), the idea to make the option for a convention a regular feature originated with the Con-Con that produced the 1963 constitution.
“They said, ‘Well, let’s just be proactive and say we’ll ask you on a regular basis.'” If you believe things are going well and say no, we will continue with our lives as usual. But if not, we will begin a process,” Lupher explained.
If a convention request is approved in November 2026, a special primary and general election for delegates will be held, with one delegate elected on a partisan ballot in each of the 110 state House and 38 state Senate districts.
The convention would then convene in October 2027, with no time limit on how long it would last. In comparison, the convention that produced the current constitution began in October 1961 and lasted 10 months before adopting a proposed constitution on August 1, 1962.
In April 1963, state voters approved the document.
According to Lupher, there are arguments for and against approving a constitutional convention, despite the fact that it represents a complete overhaul.
“Unlike the questions that we get asked from time to time as an initiative state when someone circulates petitions and says, ‘Should we amend the Constitution in this way?’ — with a constitutional convention, everything is fair game, from Article One to Article 12, so it’s not a piecemeal approach. “It is an open document that will be examined from A to Z,” he stated.
Many people will be concerned that opening up the Michigan Constitution will remove abortion rights protections or redistricting provisions that were recently added through the amendment process, Lupher said, while others may see it as an opportunity to reform education funding or the tax structure.
“People have their pet issues that are important to them and not knowing who would get elected [to the convention] and what a majority would look like, there’s a reason to hope for and dread what might come,” he told me.
Bob LaBrant is a longtime GOP strategist who worked for the Michigan Chamber of Commerce until his retirement in 2012. During that time, he helped lead coalitions opposing the three previous attempts to call a constitutional convention, stating that he and the chamber believed they were unnecessary.
While he wrote a commentary for Crain’s Detroit in 2021, saying he was open to the idea as we approached 2026, he told the Michigan Advance last week in an interview that he is no longer so sure.
“There are a number of things that need to be changed in the [state] constitution; I don’t argue about that. But, given the MAGA movement [led by President Donald Trump], I’m sure if they got a majority, we’d be debating things like capital punishment,” he said.
Michigan’s legislature abolished the death penalty in 1847, and the 1963 Constitution explicitly prohibits it.
LaBrant expressed concern that, given the nation’s extreme political polarization, opening up the state’s constitution may do more harm than good, with other contentious issues such as abortion once again coming up for debate, despite the fact that the majority of Michigan residents have clearly decided to legalize it.
He also points out that constitutional convention delegates would be paid the same as legislators in the districts they represent, which is $71,685 per year, with no limit on how long the convention could meet.
“There is no end date for the constitutional convention. “The constitutional convention establishes its own rules,” stated LaBrant. “If they decide that this is going to be a four-year exercise instead of a two-year exercise or even longer, I think they probably could.”
While there is no set time limit, Lupher stated that the delegates would be asked to take time away from their daily lives to complete the task.
“So, they wouldn’t want that to go on for a long time,” he joked. “When they create a new draft document, they will try to sell it to voters by saying, ‘This is why we think it’s better than our current document.'” Under the best of circumstances, it takes several years. It could go on for much longer, but I don’t think it’s in their best interests.”
Lupher stated that the CRC will begin rolling out a comprehensive set of analyses on the constitutional convention question early next year.
“Our plan is to start our research this spring, meeting with some constitutional scholars and in different interests to understand different perspectives and then we will start putting pen to paper and as we did in 2010, and as we did in 1994, releasing the papers over time instead of one grand volume that will be hard to digest,” he told me.
