Voters in most states leaned progressive in Tuesday’s votes not only in their choices of candidates but also in their stances on ballot measures. The Ballot Initiative Strategy Center summarizes the results of votes cast on ballot questions this week, and in five of the six states where citizens got to vote directly on policy, voters tended to align with Democratic priorities.
Maine voters approved a gun-control measure that will allow courts to take guns away from individuals if their family, household members, or the cops show that the individuals are likely to hurt themselves or others. Maine voters rejected a Republican proposal to require voter IDs and pile other restrictions on absentee voting.
Coloradans voted to raise taxes on the rich and increase funding to a school lunch program that now can buy lunch for all public school kids, boost pay for school lunch ladies (and fellas), and help schools buy more local food.
New Yorkers did green business by voting to preserve the Mount Van Hoevenberg Winter Olympic Sports Complex and add 2,500 acres to the Adirondack Forest Preserve.
Washington voters approved seeking more funding for long-term care for the elderly and disabled… but they’re doing so by plugging their existing state fund into the stock market, so yay for doing social good, but, eh, queasy-queasy for continued feeding of the capitalist beast.
California voters supported the Democratic Party in practice, if not in democratic principle, by approving Governor Gavin Newsom’s plan to counter Republican mid-term gerrymandering in other states with Democratic gerrymandering in California. I maintain that democracy is better served by outlawing gerrymandering and using independent redistricting commissions, as California started doing in 2010. But as with nuclear weapons, we can’t really ban gerrymandering until everyone agrees to ban it. If the other side is going to stock up and deploy for their gain, we have to fight fire with fire and hope there’s some democracy left when we get done.
All that mostly liberal good in six states was arguably swamped by a mess of conservative whackdoodlery handed to voters by the Republican legislators of Texas. I give one small yay for Republicans giving Texans 17 measures to vote on but a bigger boo for the high garbage content and to Texans for largely giving that garbage a big yeehaw. Texas voters coddled the rich by prohibiting taxes on capital gains, securities transactions, and inheritances. They approved a variety of tax breaks, particularly on property taxes, which appear targeted to property owners in tough situations but which put a squeeze on the revenues government needs to serve public needs. They handed the governor more power over the commission that oversees judges. They endorsed Republican hoopla about parental rights and non-citizen voting.
But even Texas voters showed some glimmers of good progressive sense. They approved investing $3 billion in science to figure out how to prevent and treat dementia. Of course, they’re probably just worried about King Don.
States with ballot measures Tuesday largely leaned the right way, which is the left way. Let’s hope candidates can capitalize on that Democratic sensibility in the 2026 mid-terms.