Term-limits referendums are overwhelmingly successful

Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Rauner is championing a term-limits referendum proposal to amend the Illinois Constitution. If the measure is successful, it would limit terms in the Illinois General Assembly to eight years. The proposal has three major hurdles to pass to become law. It must: Gather more than 300,000 signatures to appear on the ballot Survive...

Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Rauner is championing a term-limits referendum proposal to amend the Illinois Constitution. If the measure is successful, it would limit terms in the Illinois General Assembly to eight years.

The proposal has three major hurdles to pass to become law. It must:

1. Gather more than 300,000 signatures to appear on the ballot
2. Survive any legal challenges attempting to pull it from the ballot
3. Earn a three-fifths majority of those voting on the amendment or a simple majority of those voting in the election.

It might seem like a monumental task, especially considering the last time a measure like this was attempted in 1994 it didn’t survive a legal challenge.

However, if it gets to the voters there should be a very good chance of it passing. The measure has been overwhelmingly positive in other states. Voters in 20 states have voted in favor of term-limit proposals, while only two states have narrowly opposed them. Here’s a look at the referendum results from across the country since 1990.

U.S. state term-limit referendums since 1990

A poll by the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute found that 78.7 percent of Illinois voters support legislative term limits.

If voters have their say, Illinois may soon have term limits on elected officials.

Let’s hope they get that chance.