Initiatives

Uruguay, And A Common Language of Direct Democracy

Joe Mathews — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 21:13:00 -0400

Among the most interesting people at this global meeting of journalists and academics here in Aarau has been David Altman, a political science professor at Catholic University in Chile. Altman has done the most comprehensive survey work, looking at every use of direct democracy in the world in the period from 1985 to 2005.

Two of his findings stick out. !. Uruguay, not the United States, is the most direct democratic country in the western Hemisphere. For all the activitiy in U.S. states, we don't have a national initiative or referendum. (Though former Alaska Sen. Mike Gravel has spent years pushing for just that). Bur Uruguay, despite repeated and dramatic changes in its constitution, has had a durable direct democracy. Altman's paper on this is here.

2. Altman makes a strong case that we need a common, global language for direct democracy. (We don't even have a common language in the American press. (The Washington Post, for reasons only its editors know, insists on using the term referendum -- inaccurately -- to describe ballot initiatives in California and other Western states.) Altman has broken the types of ballot measures into two main categories: plebiscites (ballot measures that come from "above", from rulers) and referendums (ballot measures that come from below, through collections of signatures or other popular methods).

Under plebiscites, he identifies four types: 1 constitutional plebiscites (binding measures required by the constitution), 2 consultive plebiscites (where the rulers ask voters their opinion), 3 binding plebiscites (where the rulers ask but they have to accept the result) and 4 legislative counter-proposal (where rulers put on their own alternative to a true popular referendum.

Under referendums, there are another four types: 1 popular initiatives (that's what we know in California) 2 facultatitve referenda (that's when voters gather signatures to force a vote on whether to approve a legislative action), 3 recall, and 4 consultive initiatives (indirect initiatives, in which voters gather signatures to put an item on the legislative agenda -- but cannot enact it directly).

It's as good a language as I've seen. More from Altman in the future.

Turnout Apologies

Joe Mathews — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 12:45:00 -0400

BERN, Switzerland -- As a group of journalists and I (all of us cover direct democracy) make our way around this country by train and by bus on our way to a conference Wednesday, we keep meeting Swiss who boast -- politely -- about their direct democracy. They describe it as frustrating, problematic, but also as essential part of their political culture. There's one topic, however that they seem sheepish about: voter turnout.

It's low, very low. In Sunday's referendum and initiative elections in the canton of Zurich, the nation's largest, voter turnout came in at just 35 percent. And Denise Meyer, an election official there, described that as typical. In Uri, where direct democracy is a passion, a top canton minister described a turnout of 45 percent as pretty good.

The Swiss offer some excuses, but the problem seems to be that their direct democracy is so common a part of life, it doesn't inspire voters to the polls. Swiss voters often cast ballots as many as four times a year on referenda and initiatives. High turnout elections usually only involve high-profile issues -- anything having to do with getting the traditionally neutral country closer to Europe. Otherwise, most people stay home. The Swiss certainly make it easy to vote -- by mail, by email (and sometimes by text message, though I'll have a post later on the problems with this). and at the polls -- but making it easy doesn't bring folks out. Even here, it's the heat of controversy -- not civic duty -- that seems to drive turnout. Or to put it another way, a majority of Swiss seem to have a permanent case of voter fatigue.

Tip Generously: Casino Workers Take On Initiative Process

Joe Mathews — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 15:18:00 -0400

A group representing tip-earning casino workers in Nevada earlier this year filed a statewide initiative to bar casinos from forcing them to pool their tips and share them with supervisors. Then they got a lesson in direct democracy. Their initiative, and 11 others, were challenged by opponents and successfully knocked off the ballot.

Now the union-backed group, PEST (Committee to Prevent Employees From Seizing Tips") has gone to court, filing a lawsuit that claims the state's rules on ballot initiatives are unconstitutional. If this suit gets any traction, it will be worth watching because casino workers are challenging everything -- the single subject rule, the requirements for title and summary, and the ability of opposition groups to challenge a measure before signatures are filed.

Donations For, Against Prop 8 Already Top $30 Million

Joe Mathews — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 14:36:00 -0400

Supporters of the California initiative to ban same-sex marriage have outpaced opponents thus far. More details in this Los Angeles Times story. Bob Stern of the Center for Governmental Studies, which recently completed an excellent report on initiatives, says that Prop 8 could prove to be the most expensive campaign ever waged over a social issue.

Every Ballot Measure Has a Back Story

Joe Mathews — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 20:28:00 -0400

At least the 12 on the statewide ballot in California. And Robert Greene of the LA Times tells these stories.

Colorado Compromise?

Joe Mathews — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 22:35:00 -0400

In Colorado, there's a multi-initiative war between business and labor interests. Each side is sponsoring multiple measures. But there are talks underway, with some participation by Gov. Bill Ritter, aimed at avoiding a full war in November. The Denver Business Journal has details. Labor has agreed to drop its initiatives -- which are aimed at business prerogatives -- if business leaders will help the unions defeat Measure 47, an initiative to make Colorado a "right-to-work," or open shop, state.

ADDED, 9/21: More details on the talks from the Rocky Mountain News, which even has some documents on the deal-making.

Billionaires and Ballot Initiatives

Joe Mathews — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 19:30:00 -0400

Fundraising for ballot initiatives is a rich man's game. In 2006 in California, some two-thirds of all donations to ballot measures came in the amount of $1 million or more, according to a recent report from the Center for Governmental Studies. Yes, two-thirds of all donations.

So the latest big cash dumps in California are business as usual. Peter Sperling just gave $2.5 million to Prop 7, an alternative fuels measure. And George Soros found some spare change with the lint in his pants -- about $400,000 -- and threw it to Prop 5, which would expand drug rehabilitation and loosen some penalties for drug offenders. Soros' total donations to the measure? $1.4 million. So far. The Sacramento Bee has details.

The Palin Pick, and Alaska's Direct Democracy

Joe Mathews — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 18:00:00 -0400

Get ready, America, for a lesson in one of our country's strangest states. What makes Alaska so different? It's not just the cold and the empty landscape. (CORRECTED 9/4): Alaska is one of a few states to have had direct democracy since its founding. Arizona has had the initiative and referendum since statehood, and Oklahoma since shortly after it joined the union.

So it's fair to say that Alaska has been shaped more profoundly by direct democracy than almost any other state in the union. As every bit of Gov. Sarah Palin's life is scrutinized, you'll hear lots of odd things for which direct democracy is part of the answer. (Here's my strongest prediction about this choice: once Americans learn how Alaska works, Leno and Letterman will start making jokes -- and it'll be years before they stop). For example, she'll have to admit -- as she has done in the past -- that she smoked marijuna. But she'll have an explanation that may surprise people. Marijuana was LEGAL in Alaska until 1990, and not just for medicinal purposes. Thank the voters for the right. The voters also took the right away.

You'll also hear about her love of hunting and fishing, and her husband's work as a commercial fisherman and in the oil fields. You'll hear a lot from environmentalists about state management of public land. Alaska law in all these matters has been profoundly shaped by the ballot. And you also should expect to see her attacked by good government types as "not a real reformer" for her decision not to back a ballot initiative establishing public finance in Alaska. The measure was defeated in Tuesday's primary elections there.

For an overview of Alaska's initiative and referenda history, check out the state page on ballotpedia.

Alaskans Head To Polls; Wolves Await People's Verdict

Joe Mathews — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 13:25:00 -0400

Alaskans will consider four initiatives Tuesday, including a ban on aerial hunting of wolves and other wildlife. The above ad for Measure 2 stays aways from the controversial wolves, and instead dwells on the far more cuddly bears.

By Alaska standards, this election has been unusually costly and high-profile. The other measures concern public financing of campaigns, gambling, and new regulation of mines in the name of cleaner water. The last received the full front-page and editorial treatment from the New York Times. Total spending for and against the measure is likely to top $10 million. That's enormous in a state of 670,000 people. To translate, if there was similar per-capita spending on a California ballot initiative, the total spending would approach $600 million.

Oregon Assessment

Joe Mathews — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 14:23:00 -0400

The Swing State Project has an excellent breakdown of the various Oregon ballot measures and their political prospects. Among the highlights: a measure that corrects a bizarre legal flaw that prevents people under 21 years of age from voting in school board elections. I disagree with the site's assessment of Measure 58, which would require English immersion for students instead of ESL. I think that will have broad-based support, not just from people on the far right. And for you political reformers out there, the site predicts a narrow defeat for Oregon's "top two"-style open primary measure, #65.