Update: 3-to-5 initiative ballot questions

Should the Board of Douglas County Commissioners remain three members, or increase to five? With a public process – and one court proceeding – now complete, voters will decide.  

Most recently, Douglas County District Court rejected claims brought by State Rep. Bob Marshall challenging the actions of the Board of County Commissioners.  

The Court found it lacked jurisdiction to change the ballot title set by the Board and lacked the authority to prohibit the County’s referred measure. Marshall filed an emergency motion asking the Court to reconsider, which the Court denied Wednesday.  

“The court delivered a clean sweep for Douglas County taxpayers and confirmed what we knew all along: the law was strictly followed, and we did our jobs well on behalf of Douglas County,” said Commissioner Kevin Van Winkle. “Voters deserve full transparency—not hidden costs. They deserve to know how expanding government would impact their wallets. The court also rejected attempts to silence voter choice and protected the right to hold every commissioner accountable, rather than letting commissioners make decisions about their lives without facing all voters. Transparency and voter accountability won.”   

The ruling closes a series of pre-election legal challenges seeking to overturn actions by the Board as Douglas County processed a citizen-initiated county ballot measure for the first time in more than three decades. 

Three questions are scheduled to appear on the Nov. 3, 2026, General Election ballot. 

The process began with a voter-initiated petition proposing to increase the size of the Board and proposing two options for Board composition – three commissioners elected only by district and two elected at-large, or all five elected by district only by the voters of that district. Petitioners completed the requirements for the measure to qualify for the ballot on Aug. 12.  

A third question, referred by the Board of Douglas County Commissioners, asks voters who should vote for each seat. (Currently, three commissioners must live in their district but are elected countywide.) 

“What began as a legitimate citizen petition unfortunately became surrounded by accusations, protests, courtroom challenges, and political theater,” said Commissioner Abe Laydon. “Today, the facts matter more than the rhetoric. We conducted the people’s business in public. We gave citizens the transparency they deserve. And after all the allegations and litigation, the challengers did not prevail.” 

The Public Process  

• Aug. 25: Because this is the first successful voter-led initiative since 1994, the Board adopted updated procedures for handling voter-initiated measures in accordance with current state law. 

• Aug. 27: During a public Work Session, the Board directed staff to clarify the ballot title, provide information about potential financial impacts and prepare a related Board-referred measure. 

• Aug. 28: The Board unanimously set the ballot title for the voter-initiated measure. 

• Aug. 31: The Board unanimously referred a separate question asking whether all registered Douglas County voters should continue to elect all County Commissioners if the expansion is approved. 

• Sept. 3 and 4: The Board conducted public administrative hearings on protests filed concerning the two ballot measures. The Board’s role in these hearings is defined in state law, not the resolution the Board passed on Aug. 25. Both challenges were denied. Both were challenged in Court.  

• Sept. 11: Douglas County District Court confirmed the Board’s authority to fix the ballot title in the voter-initiated petition and to refer a related measure to the ballot.  

• Sept. 15: Douglas County District Court denies Rep. Bob Marshall’s emergency motion to reconsider its Sept. 11 decisions.  

Meeting recordings, resolutions, ballot language, financial information and other supporting documents are available on the County’s 3-to-5 Commissioners webpage.

Douglas County voters will make the final decision on these measures in the Nov. 3 General Election. For official election information from the Douglas County Office of Clerk and Recorder, visit DouglasCOVotes.gov.

Legal Disclaimer:

EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.