California knows how to party … and also how to govern by ballot measure. Here’s a quick rundown of how this year’s crop of measures have fared at the polls.
Proposition 1: Abortion and Contraception Become a Fundamental Right
This amendment to the state constitution is now projected to pass by a wide margin with 65 percent in favor. This was not particularly a shock. Abortion was already legal and protected in California. But spending on the campaign was still high. Our own Nathaniel Rakich suspects this was a get-out-the-vote tactic for Democrats in other races.
Proposition 26 and 27: Voters Say No to Gambling
The only kind of sports betting legal in California is horse racing, and these measures were aimed at expanding the business. Proposition 26 would have made sports betting legal on Native American reservations and at the state’s existing horse racing tracks. Proposition 27 would have legalized online sports betting, opening new markets to websites like DraftKings. All of this stemmed from a 2018 Supreme Court decision that overturned a nationwide ban on sports betting. But California voters didn’t want to take the risk (eh? eh?) and voted both proposals down by massive margins, despite campaign spending that made these the most expensive proposition votes in state history.
Proposition 28: Public Arts and Music Education is Now Guaranteed
Aimed at preventing budget cuts from always meaning a cut to arts education, this proposal requires the state to set aside funds for arts and music. There’s no new funding source. It’s a mandated dedication, not an increase in the pool of money. And 62 percent of Californians said “yes”.
Proposition 29: No New Requirements for Dialysis Centers
Eighty thousand people in the state of California rely on dialysis centers to clean their blood because their kidneys are incapable of doing the job. But 70 percent of voters have rejected a proposal that would have required these centers to have a licensed physician on site and prevented them from turning away clients who can’t pay. What’s more, this is the third time in as many decades that Californians have said “no” to basically the same proposal.
Proposition 30: Ain’t No Tax For the Wealthy; Money For EV’s Don’t Grow On Trees
Sixty-five percent of Californians rejected a proposal that would have increased the tax rate on incomes above $2 million and used the extra funds to help more people buy electric cars and to improve wildfire prevention and firefighting infrastructure. But this seemingly feel-good measure made a lot of enemies among people who are normally pretty solidly in favor of environmental policy. That’s because its primary backer was rideshare companies, which are required by state law to electrify their fleets. Many people saw it as an attempt to get taxpayers to cover that business expense.
Proposition 31: Tobacco Must Taste Like Tobacco
Bad news for anyone who prefers their addictive brown leaves to taste like something more delicious. Sixty-two percent of Californians voted to uphold a ban on flavored tobacco products, ending the sale of everything from old reliable menthol cigarettes to whimsically flavored vaping liquids.