Missouri judge rewords right-to-work referendum summary

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — A Missouri circuit judge said Republican Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft’s office wrote a confusing and grammatically incorrect summary of a referendum to repeal right to work.

A summary is meant to help voters understand ballot measures. But Cole County Circuit Court Judge Daniel Green on Thursday ruled the right-to-work summary could confuse voters.

Republican Gov. Eric Greitens in February signed the right-to-work law banning mandatory union fees. Union opponents want voters to weigh in on the measure, hoping it will be repealed.

Green said voters deserve to be asked in a “grammatically competent” manner whether to keep the law. He rewrote the summary.

Green also switched it to make a “yes” vote mean a vote to repeal the law. A “no” vote will indicate support for right to work.