Ward Connerly Had Major Losses in His 2008 Effort to Abolish Race-Sensitive Admissions at Public Universities in Five States

A year ago Ward Connerly of the American Civil Rights Institute had planned a Super Tuesday this November when five states would vote to abolish the consideration of race in admissions to state universities. Connerly had previously met with success in offering similar public referenda in California, Washington State, and Michigan.

But efforts to get initiatives on the ballots in Oklahoma, Arizona, and Missouri came up short. Connerly was able to get the issue before the voters in Colorado and Nebraska.

In Nebraska, 58 percent of the voters approved the anti-affirmative action measure by a 58 percent to 42 percent margin. But in Colorado, Amendment 46 to the state constitution was narrowly defeated. In Colorado, a slim 50.6 percent majority rejected the proposal to ban affirmative action.

Copyright © 2008. The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education. All rights reserved.