Election Watchdog Recommendations

Prop 73   Prop 74   Prop 75   Prop 76   Prop 77   Prop 78

Election Watchdog has closely monitored the wasteful extra election called by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Our conclusion: The initiative process has been hijacked by the governor, his big industry donors and political allies. We believe Californians should say “NO” to Arnold’s power grab and say “NO in November.”

Many Californians are angry that the Governor is wasting $50 million on an unscheduled election when there is another election coming up. Don’t fall for the Governor’s trap! The big industry lobbyists and political interests that benefit from Arnold’s initiatives hope you will be too disgusted to get out and vote. Californians who want to protect our state against this outrageous abuse of the initiative process must go to the polls and vote NO in November.

A NO vote will tell the big industry donors who have given Schwarzenegger $64 million that they can’t buy the initiative process. A NO vote will restore the initiative process to the citizens and take it away from the politicians and their allies who have abused it for their own partisan purposes.

Here’s why Election Watchdog has concluded that Propositions 73-78 are deceptive, unfair and bad for Californians:

No On Proposition 73: Buried in his Deceptive Constitutional Amendment is Fine Print Which Will Undermine Legal Rights Under Roe v. Wade

This initiative is a deceptive “Trojan Horse” that will have far broader legal consequences than its proponents advertise. The initiative proponents argue that this measure is about notifying parents when a teenager seeks an abortion. However, hidden in the fine print of Prop. 73 is an amendment to the California Constitution which will define abortion as causing "death of the unborn child, a child conceived but not yet born." This could have enormous implications and appears to be a stealth attempt to undermine the constitutional rights provided by Roe v. Wade. The enormous changes which Prop. 73 will cause should be debated openly, not disguised in such a deceptive manner. By intentionally misleading voters, Prop 73 will undermine confidence in the initiative system.

Prop 73 also has real patient safety implications: it will endanger some young woman who will seek underground abortions because they want to maintain their privacy, cannot go to abusive parents in a troubled home, or are simply too afraid to publicly comply with the complex bureaucratic requirements of this measure.

Schwarzenegger is supporting Prop 73 as a political strategy to leverage support for his other initiatives. Regardless of your views on parental notification, both Schwarzenegger and the proponents of this initiative are attempting to hide the true impact of this measure. For this reason alone, Prop. 73 should be rejected. ...Read More

No on Proposition 74: Don’t Let Arnold Punish the Parents and Teachers Who Stood Up to Him

After the Governor reneged on his promise to reinstate lost education funding, teachers and parents became vociferous critics of Schwarzenegger. The Governor is striking back at them with Prop 74.This is another abuse of the initiative process that should not be tolerated by voters.

The governor’s attack on teachers and parents will only make things worse for our public school students. Already California spends less per pupil than the national average, about 37% less than is spent on New York students. As a result, it is difficult to attract and retain teachers in California’s public schools. Prop 74 will make the job prospects for new teachers less secure and the jobs less attractive. This means more college graduates will head for professions other than teaching. Prop 74 will particularly steer teachers away from low-income schools. Kids who can’t get a good education are more likely to end up on the street. Governor Schwarzenegger may not care about public schooling, but we believe it must be protected and teachers should be encouraged, not discouraged, from the profession....Read More

No on Proposition 75: Don't Let the Governor Use the Initiative Process to Shut Up Nurses, Firefighters, Cops and Teachers

Governor Schwarzenegger wants to shut up public servants like the nurses, firefighters, cops and teachers who have spoken out against him. Prop 75 will limit the ability of public servants to spend their union dues to make sure their voices are heard in the Legislature, but it does nothing to limit Schwarzenegger’s big industry donors from spending millions of dollars to do the same. Prop 75 is an unfair and vengeful attack against the public servants who exercised their freedom of speech to criticize the Governor. The initiative process should not be used by politicians to restrict the First Amendment rights of those who disagree with them. ...Read More

No on Proposition 76: Stop the Gov's Budget Power Grab & Save Education Funding

This is the power grab that will cost taxpayers millions. Prop 76 would give the Governor unprecedented power to cut education funding and vital public health and safety programs, including those geared toward the elderly and disabled. By allowing the governor to single-handedly cut spending on programs that help the most vulnerable Californians, and even go around previous voter initiatives ensuring education spending, Prop 76’s amendments to the California Constitution would do radical damage to the checks and balances of state government. ...Read More

No on Proposition 77: Stop Arnold's Partisan Redistricting Power Grab to Win More Legislative Seats

Our democratic system allows for partisan elections; last year Governor Schwarzenegger campaigned for a slate of Republicans, but all of his candidates lost. Because he could not get his partisan allies elected, the Governor wants to change the election rules. Prop 77 will allow three retired and unaccountable judges previously appointed by the Governor to redraw legislative districts and make it easier for members of his party to gain seats in Sacramento. Thus the Governor is using the non-partisan veneer of a ballot measure to advance partisan interests – another enormous abuse of the initiative process. All legitimate government reform advocates agree that allowing a “mid-decade” redistricting -- as Prop 77 does -- is a bad idea because it uses out-of-date census data to redraw the political district maps. This is what Tom DeLay did in Texas to change the balance of power in that state. Don’t let Arnold pull a “Tom DeLay Special” in California. ...Read More

No on Proposition 78: Stop the Drug Companies' Phony Plan that Will Lead to Higher Prices for Prescription Drugs.

This initiative is funded with $130 million of drug company money – an all time record. It is a phony plan, which does not require drug companies to lower drug prices one dime. The drug companies put it on the ballot in order to confuse voters and block Proposition 79, which drug companies fear will force them to actually lower prices. In fact, Prop 78 was drafted specifically to overturn Prop 79 if both pass. And, the drug companies want to make sure they have the last word in California: If Prop 78 passes and prescription drug prices don’t go down, only another initiative can amend the law and require drug companies to provide affordable drugs to Californians.

Schwarzenegger teamed up with drug companies after the industry donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to his political campaigns. Prop 78 is nothing more than a cynical abuse of the initiative process by the Governor’s special interest allies and should be rejected. ...Read More