Much is expected of the California voter.
In any given election year, we may be asked to dust off ourlabor lawyer hats,brush up on oil and gas regulations, reacquaint ourselves with decades oftax policy, or analyze infrastructure funding. We may have to weigh the moral pros and cons of capital punishment, marriage equality or pig protection and — over and over again — oversee all things dialysis clinic.
This November is no different. Voters will be asked to consider seven thorny policy proposals, from abortion to zero-emission vehicles. Many more failed to qualify for the ballot, including one to raise the minimum wage to $18 an hour. That means voters will decide the fewest measures in an election year since 1916.
What are these ballot measures really about? How did they make their way onto the ballot in the first place? And how did Californians first fall in love with direct democracy?
Below, California’s passion for propositions, explained.