Convention of States effort nears milestone in Kansas

A years-long effort to hold a convention of states to propose amendments under Article V of the Constitution appears poised to hit a major milestone in Kansas this week as the legislature mulls becoming the 20th state to call for such a move.In 2025, the Kansas Senate approved a resolution calling for a convention in a supermajority 29-11 vote, and the state House is expected to consider the legislation this week. A vote is expected on the measure this week.  
Should the House approve the resolution, the Senate will not need to vote again as Kansas has a multi-year legislative session.
Never Done Before
Article V of the U.S. Constitution allows amendments if two-thirds of the state legislatures approve the calling of a state convention for a specified, limited purpose.
All 27 of the previous constitutional amendments have come through the first method specified in the Constitution, when two thirds of both houses of Congress propose an amendment that is then ratified by three quarters of the states.
In this case, a minimum of 34 states would need to approve such a move for a convention to occur, and any proposed amendments would still need to be ratified by three quarters of the states (38). Nevertheless, the current initiative led by the organization Convention of States (COS) appears set to take its next step with the Kansas vote.
COS Action President Mark Meckler told Just the News that “this is an extraordinary moment for the Convention of States movement. Obviously, reaching the benchmark of 20 out of 34 states is a big one, and we’re excited for the states to come this year. With the President’s support, there should be many more and they could come quickly.”
COS has long lobbied state legislatures to approve a call for a convention, hoping to curb the authority of the federal government.
This would include debates on imposing fiscal restraints, term limits, and power limitations on the federal government.
Presently, 19 states have approved a resolution calling for such a convention. Four more, including Kansas, have passed a resolution in one chamber and another 18 are expected to consider similar legislation this year.
Litigation speed-bump 
Though the Kansas bill cleared the state House committee in March 2025, litigation stalled its advancement due to a dispute over the passage threshold. The Kansas Constitution required that both chambers of the legislature approve a constitutional convention via a two-thirds vote in both chambers, though in November U.S. District Court Judge Toby Crouse ruled such a requirement unconstitutional under the U.S. Constitution’s Supremacy Clause. That ruling set the stage for the Republican-led chamber to approve the resolution in the early days of the legislative session.
President Donald Trump, in September 2025, shared a Just the News article outlining the progress of the movement in the wake of the annual Convention of States Action Summit.
Should the Kansas House back the resolution, it will become the first chamber to do so since Trump amplified the effort.
Editors Note: Mark Meckler is the CEO of Just the News’s parent company.
Ben Whedon is the Chief Political Correspondent at Just the News. Follow him on X.

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