Iowa cuts ‘idiot’ from state Constitution
November 5th, 2008From KCCI-TV, Des Moines:
Iowa voters overwhelmingly approved a ballot measure to remove outdated language defining mental competency for voting rights from the state Constitution. The measure will eliminate a phrase withdrawing voter eligibility from anyone found to be an “idiot or insane person.” With the revision, the Constitution would read “a person adjudged mentally incompetent to vote.”
Rep. Pam Jochum, D-Dubuque, who advocated for revising the 1857 language, said the change reflects heightened societal respect for people with disabilities. Jochum’s 31-year-old daughter has an intellectual disability.
The measure was leading by a more than 4-to-1 margin with 63 percent of precincts reporting.
Our RSS Feed
November 5th, 2008 at 1:37 pm
Good for Iowa. I know it means very little from a legal perspective, but it does make the law reflect our modern sensibilities.
If you go through the books in most states, you will find all kinds of outdated and insulting language towards a wide array of people. I’d like to see more of these measures to clean up the books.