The DPBC and Recent Petition Drives
Ulrike Meyer was a charter member of the Democratic Party of Baxter County. After moving down to Little Rock in 2023, we continued to hear from her on Slack and text messaging. It was apparent that she had joined up with a Democratic group in Little Rock and was an active member there. In reading over an Arkansas Times report on the last days of petition signing look who was featured! Ulrike!
So congrats to Ulrike and the hundreds of women and other volunteers who canvassed the state to get support for the Education Rights Act. The Reproductive Rights petition got over 101,000 signatures in over 54 of Arkansas’s 75 counties. 90,000 was the goal needed so with some major push in the last week they exceeded the minimum.
Baxter County saw a similar push late in the campaign and met the County requirement of 784 by getting over 950 signatures for the Reproductive Rights Amendment and 877 for the Education Amendment. Although not an official project of the DPBC, almost a dozen members volunteered in getting those signatures. Johnny Rickman was the Coordinator for Baxter and four surrounding counties, Glenda Huffine canvassed in those counties and Heather Graham focused on the petitions here in Baxter County. Signatures were gained also on the Freedom of Information Expansion Petition, and the Revocation of the Tax on Female Hygiene Products and Diapers Petition. The last two also failed to meet the minimum number of signatures and will likely be refiled for the 2026 election. We should be proud that our members volunteered, putting democracy into action.
The Secretary of State, John Thurston initially rejected the Reproductive Rights petition saying the Arkansans for Limited Government failed to provide a list of the paid canvassers. A day later that information was discovered, yet now he says there are other problems. The ALG group sued and the issue was taken to the AR Supreme Court. Unfortunately, the Arkansas supreme court upheld his decision, but hopefully the petition will be refiled.
Statewide the Education Rights Amendment did not reach the required number but it did meet the minimum numbers in over fifty counties. Plans will soon follow on a retry effort with the Education Amendment. Two key points are that Arkansas schools will have to provide universal access to pre-kindergarten programs for 3 and 4 year olds. The lack of educational preparation is one of the major reasons children from underserved areas, who’ve not had the pre-K experience come to kindergarten lacking the pre-literacy and social skills that other kids have. Including more kids in these types of programs will do a lot to help them enter the school system and continue at the pace the State expects.
The second significant feature of the Educational Amendment is that private schools that accept state funds should then meet the same standards as do the public schools that get that money. A key issue is the taking of standardized tests that are also part of the public school mandates. In this way parents and educators will be able to compare their choices for schooling their children. Christian schools will still be able to teach their Chirstian curriculum, but students will not be State tested on that. Of course parents or schools who find the comparative curriculum, the standardized testing, and the requirement for certified teachers to be not acceptable can set up a unique program and avoid all those components, they just will not be eligible for government funding.
Again, congratulations to the women and other volunteers that spread out to get the minimum number of signatures in remote counties. Education Amendment supporters will learn much from the Reproductive Rights campaigners and successful passage of the Education Rights Amendment will be a smoother operation 2025.
We are so thankful to all the volunteers and it shows how much gets done when people work together for causes that are important for all. Get involved!
