By Richard Winger in the San Francisco Bay Guardian:
Proposition 14, a June 8 ballot measure, would mandate that all candidates for Congress and state office appear on the same June ballot, and that all voters use that ballot. Only the two candidates who got the highest vote totals could run in November. Even write-ins would be banned in November for Congress and state offices.
Prop. 14 also has a hidden zinger in it that would remove the Peace and Freedom and Libertarian parties from the ballot. But so far only one daily newspaper has mentioned it — the San Francisco Chronicle, in a March 11 story by Wyatt Buchanan. The state ballot pamphlet says nothing about this particularly nasty detail of Prop. 14.
California has six recognized political parties: Democratic, Republican, American Independent, Green, Libertarian, and Peace and Freedom. The parties remain ballot-qualified either by polling 2 percent of the vote for any statewide race in a midterm year (all parties get a free ride in presidential years) or by maintaining registration equal to 1 percent of the last gubernatorial vote.
In practice, it’s far easier for the smaller parties to meet the first test. The Peace and Freedom Party has 58,000 registered members, and the Libertarian Party has 85,000 registered members. But these parties always meet the 2 percent vote test. Minor parties typically draw far more votes than they have registered members.
The problem is that Prop. 14 eliminates, in practice, the 2 percent vote test. Under Prop. 14, no party officially has any nominees for any office except president and vice-president. And since minor party candidates almost never place first or second in the June primary, minor party members would never be able to run for statewide office in November. And, the catch is that only the November vote counts for meeting the 2 percent vote test.
Prop. 14 also says that members of unqualified parties will not be permitted to list their party label on the June ballot.
The real irony is that the big newspapers of California know about this problem with Prop. 14 but refuse to mention it. That’s ironic because back in 1981, when Democrats in the Legislature wanted to toughen the ballot-access requirements, the big newspapers of California denounced that bill with full fury. Forty of California’s biggest newspapers, TV stations, and radio stations editorialized against that measure.
This year the Los Angeles Times (which led the charge for minor-party access in 1981) refused to mention that Prop. 14 has the same characteristic as that bill, only worse. The Times has rejected at least 10 op-eds submitted by various individuals in the last year that mentioned this problem. None of the Los Angeles Times stories about Prop. 14 have mentioned it. None of the political columnists for that newspaper have mentioned it.
Prop. 14 is supported by the Chamber of Commerce, the for-profit health insurance companies, the for-profit hospitals, and various multimillionaires, and the Yes on 14 campaign has a huge war chest. Why won’t the L.A. Times even mention this flaw in the measure? Who are the big dailies afraid of offending?
Richard Winger is the editor of Ballot Access News.
Central Coast Sam // Jun 7, 2010:
“Why don’t the Peace and Freedoms just merge with the Greens?”
……..well ctweber and the gang have a whole lot of day to day problems and hardly ever think of long term strategies …………
Why don’t the Peace and Freedoms just merge with the Greens?
That’s something Robert Milnes should work on; until that happens, PLAS can’t work very well in California.
and the libertarians can run as independents or Republicans, or Democrats in the cases of the ones who don’t care as much about economic issues. Or, maybe even greens, if Milnes gets his way.
“no more “truth in labeling.” That, plus the new, commission-drawn districts, could bring some interesting results in 2012.”
About said commission *personal experience* numerous barriers could bump a person out of the running.
Changing parties, changing addresses, changing pretty much any thing was an automatic obstruction.
The fairness of said commission ????? I sure have my doubts …….
amen, baby, amen
Ric hard Winger on the job with precision, and exactitude.
Thanks for the excellent Richard Winger post. Winger is a great American patriot.
Jerry, you should be free to vote for whatever you want, and that’s exactly what Prop 14 prevents.
I happen to be in another state that uses the same process and I am waiting to see what the results are. I had considered running this time but two people whom I work with in another capacity are running as Democrats. If there is no consideration to making a change then I will seriously consider running as a Democrat next time around which is why my name is not at the top of this post.
isn’t it the new “in” thing to be “Vote for person not party?” So come on third parties you want your cake and eat it too? seriously….some third parties advocate….Vote for the person not the party…now its VOTE FOR PARTY? EY yi yi lucy…..
The supporters of Prop. 14 may change their minds when activists from the alternative parties start running as Democrats in Democratic districts and Republicans in Republican districts, or simply don’t list an affiliation. This is why the labor unions wrote the argument against 14, and their argument is correct. There will be no more “truth in labeling.” That, plus the new, commission-drawn districts, could bring some interesting results in 2012.
Yes, I know it’s late in the game, but for information-spreading and contact-gathering purposes, if nothing else, it’s would be a total shame not to do a …
3 responses so far ?
*1 Robert Milnes // Jun 6, 2010:
“Sounds to me like this slick move* was well planned well in advance. Maybe a scheme to get Arnold the presidency is in the works too.”
Oh, no doubt, no doubt! And *personal experience from August 18, 2003* he is a rotten lying Son of a Bitch ……….
* how slick do have to be when your opponents are asleep!
“The real irony is that the big newspapers of California know about this problem with Prop. 14 but refuse to mention it. ”
No, no, no, the REAL irony is that the current, last minute opponents did not yell and scream YEARS AGO ………. Voters are tired of last minute hysteria! But good luck folks, a dozen or so mail in votes should kick things off.
(I was the first vote in the entire state for the Dump Davis special election in 2003)
Maybe the GP & LP would HAVE TO try PLAS in the primary. Or BOTH have no candidates in November.
Sounds to me like this slick move was well planned well in advance. Maybe a scheme to get Arnold the presidency is in the works too.