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Margins of Victory

Currently, the relevant section reads:

First, the state legislature may pass an act which is signed by the governor, proposing a state constitutional amendment, which is then submitted to the voters as a referendum at the next statewide election. If more than 50% of the voters approve the referendum then the constitutional amendment is approved and goes into effect. Second, the general public may propose via the initiative, either amendments to the state constitution or the creation of new statute laws, which is done by writing a proposed constitutional amendment or statute as a petition, and submitting the petition to the state's Attorney General along with a submission fee (in 2004 this was $200), and obtaining signatures on petitions from registered voters amounting to 8% (for a constitutional amendment) or 5% (for a statute) of the number of people who voted in the most recent election for governor. The signed petitions are then sent to the state's Secretary of State for validation of signatures.

The second point should specify the margin of victory necessary. Does 50% of the electorate pass a constitutional amendment or is a supermajority required? -- Pender ( talk) 21:06, 15 May 2008 (UTC) reply

Please add see also link

I think there should be a link to a page describing the proposition processes in other states, and where they exist, around the world. Will ( Talk - contribs) 21:39, 14 May 2008 (UTC) reply

  • I disagree. This is only about the California process, not ballot processes worldwide. - Tim1965 ( talk) 12:37, 11 October 2009 (UTC) reply

NPOV

The final sentence is WP:NPOV and provides undue weight to the opinion expressed. This is a highly controversial subject, and it should not be represented by the snarky opinion of a right-wing news and opinion magazine. - Tim1965 ( talk) 12:36, 11 October 2009 (UTC) reply

I've removed the offending (but funny) sentence. It can be re-added in future if someone comes up with a balance passage of text on criticisms of the initiative. The removed text is:

The Economist has referred to California's ballot propositions as the "crack cocaine of democracy." [1]

Iota ( talk) 20:08, 18 November 2009 (UTC) reply

References

  1. ^ "Ballot initiatives, the crack cocaine of democracy, have left only around a quarter of its budget within the power of [California's] representative politicians." "America's future". The Economist. July 9 2009. Retrieved 2009-07-09. {{ cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= ( help)