Missouri Landslide

ARLINGTON, VA – “Voters spoke decisively Tuesday on a ballot measure in Missouri to enact English as the official language of their state government,” says K.C. McAlpin, executive director of ProEnglish.

“Our organization urged Missourians to vote ‘yes’ on constitutional amendment No. 1 to enshrine English as the official language in the state constitution,” McAlpin said. “Unfortunately the United States is one of the few countries in the world without an official language. So having official English in a state constitution is important to protect it from being thrown out by activist judges who want to substitute their own rule for that of the people,” he added.

“The Missouri measure won by 86.3 percent in a state that narrowly split its presidential vote between Barack Obama and John McCain,” McAlpin notes. “This landslide vote confirms national polls reflecting that a vast majority of Americans – Democrat, Republican and independent— reject costly and confusing multilingualism and support English as our nation’s official language.”

A post-election analysis of Missouri’s landside vote
in favor of official English

On Nov. 4th 2008 Missouri voters passed a constitutional amendment making English the official language of their state government by a 6-1 (86.3%) margin. All official proceedings in the state must now be conducted in English alone and English must be used at “all governmental meetings, at which any public business is discussed, decided, or public policy is formulated.”

Zogby International conducted a post election poll to analyze the vote result and voter sentiment about making English the official language of the United States. The online survey of 808 voters was conducted from Nov. 7 to Nov. 11, 2008. (Margin of error of +/- 3.5 percent)

1. The poll sample was normalized to statistically represent the statewide vote for president, not just voters who voted on the constitutional amendment. This accounts for the significant 13% disparity between the actual vote (86% favorable) and the pool of poll respondents (73% favorable).

2. The number of self-identified Hispanic and Asian voters in the polling sample was statistically insignificant.


Action Urge Congress to defend English Model official English statute Donate Current Legislation State Profiles ProEnglish BLOG Sign up for Twitter Email sign up Issues Official English Bilingual Education English on the Job Citizenship and Immigration Bilingual Ballots Puerto Rican Statehood Ending E.O. 13166, the "Multilingual Mandate" Contact us: 1601 N. Kent St. Suite 1100 Arlington, VA 22209 ph: (703) 816-8821 fax: (571) 527-2813		For immediate release Contact: Phil Kent November 5, 2008 Phone: (404) 226-3549 Official English wins by a landslide in Missouri ARLINGTON, VA – “Voters spoke decisively Tuesday on a ballot measure in Missouri to enact English as the official language of their state government,” says K.C. McAlpin, executive director of ProEnglish. “Our organization urged Missourians to vote ‘yes’ on constitutional amendment No. 1 to enshrine English as the official language in the state constitution,” McAlpin said. “Unfortunately the United States is one of the few countries in the world without an official language. So having official English in a state constitution is important to protect it from being thrown out by activist judges who want to substitute their own rule for that of the people,” he added. “The Missouri measure won by 86.3 percent in a state that narrowly split its presidential vote between Barack Obama and John McCain,” McAlpin notes. “This landslide vote confirms national polls reflecting that a vast majority of Americans – Democrat, Republican and independent— reject costly and confusing multilingualism and support English as our nation’s official language.” # # # A post-election analysis of Missouri’s landside vote in favor of official English On Nov. 4th 2008 Missouri voters passed a constitutional amendment making English the official language of their state government by a 6-1 (86.3%) margin. All official proceedings in the state must now be conducted in English alone and English must be used at “all governmental meetings, at which any public business is discussed, decided, or public policy is formulated.” Zogby International conducted a post election poll to analyze the vote result and voter sentiment about making English the official language of the United States. The online survey of 808 voters was conducted from Nov. 7 to Nov. 11, 2008. (Margin of error of +/- 3.5 percent) When asked if they voted FOR or AGAINST official English in Missouri 73% of poll respondents said they voted FOR constitutional amendment No.1 to make English the official language of Missouri.[1] 57% of Democrats, 96% of Republicans and 66% of Independents said they voted FOR the amendment. Obama voters voted 3-2 in favor; McCain voters voted 9-1 in favor. 74% of white voters and 78% of black voters voted for the amendment.[2] When asked if they would SUPPORT or OPPOSE official English in the U.S. 73% of poll respondents said they SUPPORT making English the official language of the United States. 59% of Democrats, 96% of Republicans, and 64% of Independents said they SUPPORT making English the official language of the U.S. By the same margins in Question No. 1, Obama voters and McCain voters, as well as white and black voters, favored making English the official language of the U.S. 1. The poll sample was normalized to statistically represent the statewide vote for president, not just voters who voted on the constitutional amendment. This accounts for the significant 13% disparity between the actual vote (86% favorable) and the pool of poll respondents (73% favorable). 2. The number of self-identified Hispanic and Asian voters in the polling sample was statistically insignificant.

Official English wins by a landslide in Missouri