While Republicans ran the electoral table this election, they weren't so successful with constitutional amendments.
And, in a way, they have no one to blame but themselves.
When the GOP-controlled Legislature raised the requirement for passage from a simple majority to 60 percent, it made amendments more difficult to pass.
What could be called the "Amendment 4 rule," because of its apparent design to derail the Hometown Democracy anti-growth initiative, the 60 percent threshold ended up being moot on Amendment 4, because the measure garnered only 33 percent at the polls.
But the 60 percent standard took down two legislative amendments this year that would have passed previously with simple majorities.
Amendment 8 -- the class-size modification measure -- pitted conservative Republican lawmakers against liberal interest groups, led by the Florida Education Association, the state teachers' union.
The measure, placed on the ballot by lawmakers, received 55 percent of the vote Tuesday, but that fell short of the required 60 percent for passage. If approved, Amendment 8 would have halted the final phase of class-size reduction rules and reverted to last year's formula, which required compliance according to looser schoolwide averages.
The tighter, and now reaffirmed, rule mandates that each individual classroom adhere to specific teacher-pupil ratios -- a standard that the Florida School Boards Association predicts will cost the state and local school districts an additional $1 billion in instructor costs this year.
Amendment 1, a GOP-backed call to repeal a constitutional provision that provides public financing for statewide candidates who agree to spending limits, also won a majority, 53 percent. Yet because support didn't hit 60 percent, it also failed.
The financing program is generally favored by Democrats -- though it was unused in this year's costly gubernatorial contest, as both Republican Rick Scott and Democrat Alex Sink declined to limit their record spending.
Republicans also came up losers on Amendments 5 and 6, the hotly contested redistricting measures.
Despite stiff opposition from the Florida Chamber of Commerce and GOP legislative leaders who recruited former Secretary of State Kurt Browning to lead their fight, the two amendments each received 63 percent of the vote.
The so-called FairDistricts amendments seek to abolish political gerrymandering by requiring that legislative and congressional boundaries be compact and contiguous. New districts will be drawn by the next Legislature, based on the 2010 census. Florida is expected to pick up two congressional seats, boosting its delegation from 25 to 27.
Opponents of Amendments 5 and 6, including incoming state Sen. President Mike Haridopolos, have called the measures "a full-employment act for lawyers." GOP lawmakers warn that appointed judges, not elected representatives, will end up determining the final lines.
FairDistricts was funded heavily by millions of dollars contributed by labor unions, trial lawyers and other Democratic Party interests.
The opposition campaign, "Protect Your Vote," received more than $2 million from the Republican Party of Florida.
This fall's most popular ballot measure, Amendment 2, provides an additional homestead property tax exemption for active-duty or military reserve personnel.
Amendment 2 was approved by 78 percent of voters.
Finally, a non-binding referendum directing that the federal government balance its budget proved almost as popular, receiving 72 percent approval.
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Contact Kenric Ward at kward@sunshinestatenews.com or at (772) 801-5341.
