Petition signature rule changes near elections
In the lead up to the 2024 election, Thurston, in his role as secretary of state, rejected legal petitions to add amendments to the November 5 ballot, despite various groups' coordination with his office. He cited inconsistently enforced procedures that had not been followed, and rejected ballot signatures as invalid with little transparency as to why.
In July 2024, Arkansas Secretary of State Thurston announced the rejection of petitions submitted to place an abortion rights amendment on the state's November ballot. The amendment sought to protect abortion access within the state constitution, specifically allowing abortion in cases of rape, incest, fatal fetal anomalies, or to safeguard the health of the mother within the first 18 weeks of pregnancy. However, the petitions were disqualified due to technical issues, primarily involving improper documentation regarding paid canvassers. The failure to provide necessary paperwork reduced the number of valid signatures by over 14,000, leaving the total below the required threshold of 90,704 signatures for ballot inclusion.
The group behind the petition, Arkansans for Limited Government (AFLG), had collected more than 100,000 signatures from across 54 counties. Despite their efforts, the Secretary of State's office cited non-compliance with statutory requirements because they did not identify paid canvassers by name nor provide a signed statement confirming that canvassers were given the required documents before collecting signatures.
The group believed it had submitted the paperwork properly and on time as they coordinated closely with Thurston's office throughout the entire process. Despite this, the Arkansas Supreme Court ruled 5–4 against AFLG, holding up Thurston's original claim that they had not followed procedure because they did not submit the paid canvasser training certification on time.
On September 30, 2024, Thurston announced that a petition to place a medical marijuana question on the ballot did not have the number of required signatures. The petition, submitted by Arkansans for Patient Access, needed 90,704 valid signatures but only garnered 88,040. The group had initially submitted over 150,000 signatures, but nearly half of them were invalidated by Thurston and his office. The issue arose when certifications for signatures were signed by a hired canvassing company rather than the group itself. Despite the setback, the group plans to file a lawsuit, seeking to challenge the state's decision.
On October 2, 2024, the Arkansas Supreme Court overruled Thurston's decision to invalidate the signatures. He was ordered to validate roughly 18,000 signatures that he had previously invalidated.
On September 23, 2024, Thurston declared that signatures on the casino initiative petition should not be counted. In his request filed with the state Supreme Court, he asked that votes for a November ballot initiative, which could revoke the Pope County casino license, not be counted. The filing argues that the procedures for gathering signatures to place the initiative on the ballot were flawed, citing uncertified and improperly paid canvassers. This aligns with a similar argument made by the current license holder, Cherokee Nation Entertainment, LLC. In contrast, the initiative's sponsor, Local Voters in Charge, contends that procedures were followed and that a special master appointed by the court confirmed sufficient valid signatures. A hearing on the issue has been expedited by the Arkansas Supreme Court.
