Category Archives: direct democracy

California Appeals Court Upholds Most of Prop 22 (Gig Worker Measure) But Agrees with Our Amicus Brief that a Provision Barring Amendments on Collective Bargaining is Unconstitutional

March 13, 2023, 7:25 pmdirect democracyRick Hasen

You can find the opinion at this link. [corrected link] The issue that we briefed as the California Election Law Professors related to a limitation on amendments to the measure by the legislature. The court was unanimous in accepting this… Continue reading

“The Separation of Legislative Powers in the Initiative Process”

February 16, 2023, 7:43 amdirect democracyRick Hasen

Anthony Johnstone has posted this draft on SSRN (forthcoming, Nebraska Law Review). Here is the abstract: This article recenters the initiative process as a power and considers the implications of a divided legislative branch through a frame of state separation… Continue reading

“‘I feel duped’: Inside the fast-food industry’s push to dismantle a new California labor law”

February 2, 2023, 12:59 pmdirect democracy, petition signature gatheringRick Hasen

LAT: Susan Bushnell was in a hurry when a man, clipboard in hand, approached her outside a Walmart Supercenter in Vista, Calif., one afternoon last September. The man asked Bushnell to sign a petition as she wrangled her fussing… Continue reading

“Ohio Republicans launch effort to make citizen-led amendments harder to pass for voters”

November 19, 2022, 4:45 amdirect democracyEntrenchmentTabatha Abu El-Haj

Ohio Capitol Journal reports on a new push to limit direct democracy in Ohio. Following in South Dakota’s footsteps, and just a little over a week after Election Day, Ohio Republicans are talking about pushing an initiative that would… Continue reading

“Arizona voters reject effort to enact stricter voter ID law”

November 17, 2022, 1:49 pmdirect democracy, voter id2022 Election Cycle, new vote denialTabatha Abu El-Haj

AP News says it is now clear that Proposition 309, which would have imposed additional hurdles for absentee ballots and stricter voter ID requirements, has failed. The measure has fallen short by about 20,000 votes–over the recount margin. “Arizona voters… Continue reading

My New Article Posted on SSRN: “Election Reform: Past, Present, and Future”

September 13, 2022, 3:51 pmdirect democracy, legislation and legislatures, Supreme Court, theory, voting, Voting Rights ActRick Hasen

I have posted on SSRN a draft of this encyclopedia article, forthcoming in the Oxford Handbook of American Election Law (Eugene Mazo, editor, forthcoming 2023). Here is the abstract: This Chapter considers what election “reform” is and why many Americans… Continue reading

“Republicans look to restrict ballot measures following a string of progressive wins”

September 10, 2022, 1:39 pmdirect democracyRick Hasen

Politico: Republicans across the country are working to make it harder to pass ballot measures — a direct threat to abortion-rights advocates and other liberal groups’ efforts to bypass governors and legislatures and take issues directly to voters.The next major… Continue reading

“GOP escalates fight against citizen-led ballot initiatives”

September 4, 2022, 9:02 amdirect democracyRick Hasen

AP: Hundreds of thousands of people signed petitions this year backing proposed ballot initiatives to expand voting access, ensure abortion rights and legalize recreational marijuana in Arizona, Arkansas and Michigan.Yet voters might not get a say because Republican officials… Continue reading

“Michigan election board rejects abortion rights initiative”—Republican Canvassing Board Members Seem to Be Violating their Ministerial Duty to Put Measure on the Ballot

August 31, 2022, 2:12 pmdirect democracy, election subversion riskRick Hasen

AP: Michigan elections board on Wednesday rejected an abortion rights initiative after its two Republican board members voted against putting the proposed constitutional amendment on the November ballot.The two Democrats on the Board of State Canvassers voted in favor, but… Continue reading

“Arizona’s Supreme Court blocks an election reform ballot measure, voiding over 238,000 petition signatures.”

August 31, 2022, 7:48 amdirect democracyRick Hasen

NYT: Arizona’s ballot in November will exclude a sweeping election reform proposition after the state Supreme Court upheld a decision to throw out the majority of the nearly half-million petition signatures collected.The measure would have checked the power of… Continue reading

August 22, 2022, 6:56 amdirect democracyRick Hasen

Ninth Circuit Strikes Down Law Requiring that Initiative Circulators Be Montana Residents, Upholds Ban on Paying Petition Circulators Per Signature

August 10, 2022, 4:38 pmdirect democracyRick Hasen

You can find the unanimous opinion at this link.

Arizona Coalition Submits Signatures for Initiative to Expand Voter Registration and Early Voting

July 8, 2022, 4:27 amabsentee ballots, direct democracy, voter registrationDan Tokaji

WaPo: Citing efforts by Arizona’s Republican-controlled legislature to restrict access to voting, a coalition of advocacy organizations, community groups and volunteers is attempting to drastically expand voting rights in the battleground state through a ballot initiative. On Thursday, the… Continue reading

“A Systematic Assault”: GOP Rushes to Change Election Rules to Block Medicaid in South Dakota

June 1, 2022, 6:04 amdirect democracyEntrenchment, policy responsivenessTabatha Abu El-Haj

This article from Bolts Magazine demonstrates just how unabashed Republican efforts to entrench the party and its policies are at this political moment. In this instance, the goal is to prevent South Dakotans from side-stepping the Republican controlled legislature to… Continue reading