Judge strikes down geographic requirements to get amendments on ballot

A federal judge has struck down an element of Colorado’s constitution that made it tougher to get proposed amendments onto the ballot.

U.S. District Judge William J. Martinez ruled against a requirement that anyone seeking to get a proposed amendment on the ballot must collect voter signatures from all 35 state Senate districts.

Martinez ruled Tuesday that not every Senate district has an equal number of voters, as opposed to equal populations.

He left intact a requirement that a 55 percent vote is needed to approve amendments.

The secretary of state’s office says it will appeal Martinez’s ruling on Amendment 71, which voters adopted in 2016.