In the upcoming November 2026 election, Wisconsin voters will be asked to vote on three proposed amendments to the Wisconsin Constitution. These amendments will be on the ballot alongside a contentious race for governor, state legislative races that will determine control of the state legislature, and at least one closely watched federal House race that may decide which party controls the House after the midterms, among others. In a series of explainers, we describe the proposed amendments, their backgrounds, the national context, the arguments for and against the amendments, and the likely impacts.
Voters will be asked whether to amend Article V, Section 10(1)(c), of the Wisconsin Constitution to ban the governor's use of the partial veto power to increase or allow the increase of taxes or fees. Legislators introduced the partial veto amendment in response to Governor Tony Evers’s “400-year veto,” which struck words, digits, and dashes to allow localities to raise increased school funding through the 2425 school year, instead of just through 2025.
Voters will be asked whether to amend Article I, Section 18, of the Wisconsin Constitution, which protects religious freedom and bars religious preferences. The proposed amendment would expressly prohibit the government from closing or forbidding gatherings in places of worship in response to an emergency. Legislators were motivated to introduce this amendment in response to restrictions placed on churches and other places of worship during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Voters will be asked to vote on whether the Wisconsin Constitution should be amended to prohibit the government from operating programs that discriminate against or give preference to individuals on the basis of race, sex, ethnicity, or national origin. The authors of the proposed amendment describe it as restricting diversity, equity, inclusion (DEI) programs.