For 110 years, the Citizens Research Council has helped Michiganders make informed decisions through independent, nonpartisan research.
Livonia, MI, April 21, 2026 – Citizens Research Council of Michigan today released the sixth in a series of 15 papers providing information to Michigan voters ahead of the November ballot question, Proposal 1, which asks whether Michigan should hold a Constitutional Convention (Con-Con). The series discusses each of the 12 articles of the Michigan Constitution and offers history and other important background information on past Con-Cons.
The latest paper, Article III – General Government, serves as a catch-all for structural or administrative issues that delegates in 1963 needed to place somewhere in the constitution. It contains provisions that don’t neatly fit into the legislative, executive, or judicial branches. It covers relatively non-controversial subjects, such as the location of the capital, the establishment of the three branches of state government, the provision for a state militia, and the allowance of intergovernmental agreements.
A constitutional convention could revisit the current prohibition on state involvement in internal improvements and the legislature’s ability to seek advisory opinions from the state supreme court on the constitutionality of pending laws. It could also revisit the reference to a “militia,” a historically rooted but outdated term, given the existence of the National Guard and federal requirements governing National Guard units.
The Research Council’s Con-Con series aims to provide voters with information to help them decide whether convening a constitutional convention is in Michigan’s best interest. The Citizens Research Council takes no position on whether to call a constitutional convention.
