Mackinac Center for Public Policy files lawsuit over Prop 2, cites free-speech violations

The Mackinac Center for Public Policy filed a lawsuit Nov. 3 against Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson and Attorney General Dana Nessel after Michiganders approved Proposal 2 by a vote of 81.2% to 18.8%. Prop 2, the research and educational institute said, curbs free speech and is thus unconstitutional.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan, Southern Division, challenges Prop 2’s campaign finance provisions included in the proposal. Those provisions, it said, will hinder free speech and the financial anonymity of nonprofits, journalists and residents.

The Mackinac Center asked the court to declare two provisions in the proposal unconstitutional and block its enforcement.

The Mackinac Center is represented by the Institute of Free Speech.

Prop 2 Lawsuit.pdf by mcclallen

Prop 2 regulates speech when an individual or organization speaks on a candidate or ballot question, regardless of whether they advocate a vote, the Mackinac Center said in a press release issued Nov. 3.

Prop 2 will turn free, educational, and neutral speech into campaign speech that requires oversight, the Mackinac Center said. It adds that the new law will require organizations, media centers, and others to disclose the names, addresses, occupations, and employers of their financial donors, subscribers, members and other financial supporters.

Prop 2 would apply to neutral news reporting, social media posts, and research, the Mackinac Center said.

It is a Trojan Horse, Mackinac Center Executive Vice President Michael Reitz wrote in a Detroit News op-ed. If a church welcomes a candidate to Sunday service or a PTA posts about a school millage it could be in need of a campaign finance lawyer, Reitz said.

Michiganders shouldn’t face disclosure requirements or risk fines or jail because they discuss politicians, policy or elections, Patrick J. Wright, director of the Mackinac Center Legal Foundation told Michigan Capitol Confidential in an email.

Prop 2’s new disclosure requirements apply to any person or organization, including media organizations, that spends more than $5,000 in a year on communications that reference candidates within 30 days of a primary and 100 days of a general election.

Attorneys for the plaintiff say that political speech has strong constitutional protections.

“The First Amendment guarantees people the freedom to praise and criticize the elected officials who govern us,” said Brett Nolan, senior attorney at the Institute for Free Speech and lead litigator on the case, in the press release.