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Eminent Domain Dominates Ballot Box

On Nov. 7, countless issues motivated mid-term voters, but none were as ubiquitous as the continued backlash against the Supreme Court’s controversial 5-4 decision in Kelo v. New London. Libertarian activists tapped into voter anger and propelled property rights referendums onto 12 state ballots to make it the single biggest ballot issue nationwide, according to the Christian Science Monitor.

 

The court’s 2005 ruling, which narrowly favored a Connecticut municipality, precipitously expanded the scope of this police power. In Kelo, eminent domain was not used to build roads or a make way for a school. Instead 15 homesites were condemned and then turned over to a private developer.

“The specter of condemnation hangs over all property. Nothing is to prevent the State from replacing any Motel 6 with a Ritz-Carlton, any home with a shopping mall, or any farm with a factory,” wrote Justice Sandra Day O’Connor in her dissenting opinion.

The first wave of response began in statehouses. According to the Institute for Justice, irate elected officials in more than 40 state legislatures proposed bills to protect private property from eminent domain abuse. The backlash continued with the 2006 mid-term elections. Although most initiatives sought to overrule Kelo, in some Western states eminent domain was coupled with provisions that would force state and local governments to compensate land owners for a “taking,” regulatory constraints such as wetlands regulations or historic district rules that limit or restrict a property’s use.

– Eric O’Keefe