Why does the Texas Constitution have so many amendments?
The Texas's Constitution adopted in 1876, is one of the oldest among the fifty states. It is also one of the longest, since it has been amended 530 times. Once the legislature puts an amendment on the ballot for voter approval, history indicates a passage rate of 74.5%. Unlike most states, in Texas, only the legislature can place an amendment on the ballot. So when the legislature wants to pass a law and make it harder to repeal, they ask us to add it to the constitution, because only another election could repeal it, whether it belongs in a constitution or is just a run-of-the-mill law, like the establishment of an Irrigation District in some county somewhere. This explains why our constitution was just a few pages long in 1876 but now takes up four volumes in a book-and-shelf law library.
The Texas Constitution of 1876 was a reaction to Reconstruction after the Civil War. The men who drafted it wanted a new constitution to undo the progress made during Reconstruction toward equality before the law. Resentment of Reconstruction Governor Edwin J. Davis' broad powers ensured that the office of governor would be weakened in Texas. And this is why Texas has elected all its judges from 1876 until recently, as well. Also why the governor has less power than in other states, and why the legislature itself is only allowed to meet once every two years, except in case of a governor-called emergency.
"The History of Our Freedoms" is produced by KEDT-FM in Corpus Christi. Dr. Bill Chriss is a historian and legal scholar. For more on history and the constitution, check out his blog at https://drbillchriss.substack.com/.
