Latest news, weather, high school sports for Michigan’s Upper Peninsula

MARQUETTE -- When Michiganders head to the polls this November, they will be asked to weigh in on more than just candidates.

For several weeks, viewers have been inundated with a flood of political ads; many of them are not for a particular politician, but for the six proposals on November's ballot.

One of the proposals is a referendum on the current emergency manager law championed by Governor Rick Snyder.

The rest of the initiatives are proposed constitutional amendments, ranging from collective bargaining rights to a bridge to Canada.

"Michigan seems really quite comfortable in this idea of adding things to their constitution," said Dr. Steven Nelson, a professor of political science at Northern Michigan University.

The process of getting a proposal on the ballot is relatively easy compared to other states, according to Nelson.

While voters will ultimately make the decision at the ballot box, Nelson cautions lawmaking perhaps is best left to the legislators in Lansing.

"These are all forms of direct democracy, they're all, in principle, a good thing. It's just, do we want to make it easier or do we want to make this the exception?" he said.

Michigan's constitution has been amended dozens of times over the years, but critics, including Governor Rick Snyder, say using the ballot to amend the document may not be the best way to implement laws. Specifically, Snyder has taken issue with the way signatures have been collected. Recently, it has become common for special interest groups to pay solicitors to collect signatures.

In September, Snyder released a statement:  "Enshrining these seriously flawed proposals within our constitution would roll back positive reforms that are helping reinvent our state, and I encourage citizens to view them with skepticism," said Snyder.

So how do you add restrictions to ballot proposals? Well, the process is already in place.

"Constitutionally! They'd have to change the constitution so you can change the constitution," Nelson said. "It's where you have to use the process to change the process."