民调：佛蒙特选民料将通过两项修宪案，集体谈判权与平等保护入宪
据10月22日地方媒体报道，最新民调显示，佛蒙特州选民将在11月3日的中期选举中通过两项州宪法修正案：一是将集体谈判权写入州宪法，二是在种族、族裔、性别、残疾和宗教等方面进一步保障法律之下的平等待遇。投票当天，选民在选举州议员和州级官员的同时，也将对这两项修宪案作出决定。
集体谈判权修正案旨在把劳工组织与集体谈判的权利提升到宪法层面保护；平等保护修正案则要求州宪法更明确地禁止基于种族、族裔、性别、残疾或宗教的不平等待遇。两项修正案若通过，将成为佛蒙特州宪法的新增条款，对州内劳工政策与民权保护产生长期影响。
值得注意的是，本周佛蒙特的选战热度持续走高：州长选战第二场电视辩论于10月22日晚8点在NBC 5举行；取暖油价格涨至每加仑约6美元，紧急委员会将于周五表决低收入取暖援助追加款。修宪案民调结果若最终兑现，佛蒙特将成为本轮中期选举中通过劳工与民权修宪案的代表性州之一。
Poll: Vermont Voters Expected to Pass Two Constitutional Amendments, on Collective Bargaining Rights and Equal Protection
According to local media reports on October 22, the latest polling shows Vermont voters will pass two state constitutional amendments in the November 3 midterm elections: one writing collective bargaining rights into the state constitution, and another further guaranteeing equal treatment under the law across race, ethnicity, sex, disability and religion. On Election Day, as voters choose state legislators and statewide officials, they will also decide the two amendments.
The collective bargaining amendment aims to elevate the right to organize and bargain collectively to constitutional protection; the equal protection amendment requires the state constitution to more explicitly prohibit unequal treatment based on race, ethnicity, sex, disability or religion. If passed, the two amendments will become new provisions of the Vermont Constitution, with long-term effects on state labor policy and civil rights protections.
Notably, Vermont's campaign season has been heating up this week: the second televised debate in the governor's race was held at 8 p.m. on October 22 on NBC 5, and heating oil prices, up to about $6 a gallon, have also become a campaign issue, with an emergency committee to vote Friday on supplemental funding for low-income heating assistance. If the amendment polling proves accurate, Vermont will be among the representative states in this midterm cycle to pass labor and civil rights constitutional amendments.
来源：GSM·美国（原文链接）
图片来源：佛蒙特州议会大厦 / Vermont State House, Montpelier — King of Hearts, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
