IntroductionCalifornia Government

Chapter 1

California’s “Landscape”

Diverse geography & topography

770 miles long, 250 miles wide Highest peak (Mt. Whitney);

lowest point (Death Valley) 840 miles of coastline Dense ancient forests; dry

deserts; fertile farmlands Among the world’s 10

largest economies $1.9 trillion GDP

California’s “Landscape” One of the world’s most diverse

societies 39 million people; 1 of 8 Americans

live in California 1 in 4 are immigrants Largest city: Los Angeles, 3.8 million Median household income: $57,700 Persons living in poverty: 16.3%

California Population by Race/Ethnicity 1970-2015

CA compared to rest of US in 201018% of US 82% of US

WhiteWhite

Latin@

Latin@

Asian Asian

Black Black

California’s Political Landscape• Citizens are generally distrustful of politicians

and government• Massive scale of issues, problems, state

budget– $96 billion general fund budget for 2013-2014

• Heavy use of initiative process– Dominated by big spenders

• Growing prevalence of Independent voters:– 20%+ of registered voters are not affiliated with a

political party

Is California ungovernable?• How does the political culture in California

make governing difficult?– High demand for public goods– Little willingness to pay higher taxes– General distrust of government– General faith in initiative process

• What institutions and rules impede governing?– Initiative process doesn’t encourage compromise

• One option only• “Take it or leave it” (can’t be amended)

• No clear solutions to divisive issues that top the political agenda; no easy choices– Government spending

California’s Political History

California GovernmentChapter 2

History matters Earliest history still evident in today’s politics

Spanish conquest (1542-1821) Way station to the far east (Philippines and rest of Asia)

Mexican rule (1821-1848) Social and economic activity centralized in mission complexes

located along El Camino Real Ranchero era, “Ramona” Myth Less than 10,000 Mexicans living in Alta California at the time of

the Mexican-American war Mexican government gave out large land grants to encourage

settlement in Alta California Other countries (US, England, France, Russia) eyeing Alta

California

California becomes a US State Mexican-American War (1846-1848) map

US President Polk succeeds in declaring war US wins, get’s the land including California

California as a US State Gold rush encourages people to move to CA CA becomes state in compromise of 1850 CA constitution of 1849 in English, Spanish New CA constitution of 1879 in English only Independent spirit fostered by distance from Eastern

U.S.

California statehood: initial earthquakes

• Admitted as a “free” state (no slavery) in1850– Population grew rapidly with Gold Rush• Transcontinental Railroad completed 1869– Connected California to the rest of the country

• Continuing population boom– Led to concentration of political power

• Millions of acres controlled by “SP”• The “Big Four” owners of the Southern Pacific Railroad

company (“SP”)• Whole industries and political system controlled by “SP”

Discrimination against Asians Chinese

Chinese Exclusion Act (1882), passed by U.S. Congress as a result of agitation from California representatives, in effect until World War II

Chinese segregated in California, not allowed to immigrate (no family reunification), can’t marry whites, pop decline

Japanese and Koreans Agitation for segregation of Japanese and Koreans After winning the Russo-Japanese War in 1905 Japan pushed

for better treatment of Japanese in U.S. Gentlemen’s Agreement between U.S. and Japan

1907-1924: Japan agreed to restrict laborers from coming to U.S. and U.S. pressured California to stop segregating Japanese

California Alien Land Law of 1913 Residents ineligible for citizenship could not own land (Chinese,

Japanese, Korean, Asian Indians), give to kids

“Progressive” earthquake• Progressive political movement, late 1800s-mid

1910s• “Restore power to the people”• Make government more efficient; eliminate

corruption; “Good Government”• Gov. Hiram Johnson’s ambitious electoral reforms

– Direct Democracy: initiative, referendum, recall– Civil Service instead of patronage– Nonpartisan elections for local officials– Cross-filing

» Candidates could seek nomination of all political parties

Great Depression and California Great Depression

Wave of migration from Dust Bowl states Socialist journalist Upton Sinclair wins

Democratic nomination for governor, fails to win the general election 1934 “EPIC” campaign (End Poverty in California)

Postwar Developments Many African-Americans move to California during

and after WWII Many jobs in California Restrictive covenants allowed by proposition 14 passed in

1964 (declared unconstitutional by CA Supreme Court) Watts riots 1965, touched off similar throughout country Tom Bradley first African-American LA Mayor (1973-1993) LA Riots 1992 (maps of changing ethnic regions in LA)

Hispanics Zoot suit riots, Bracero program, 1942-1964 Organizing workers, Cesar Chavez Population growth Initiatives

1994, Prop 187 – deny healthcare, services to undocumented (declared unconstitutional by US Supreme Court)

1998, Prop 227 – requires all public education in English

Postwar Developments

• Rapid population & economic expansion– Infrastructure investments– Rise of Southern California with respect to

Northern California– Growth of Defense Industry (esp. in Los

Angeles and San Diego)– Water Projects (water from the north to the

south)• Political parties weakened by

Progressive reforms

Postwar Political Earthquakes Proposition 13 in 1978

“Grassroots” political response to skyrocketing property values and tax rates

Capped property taxes at 1% of a property’s purchase price

Beginning of “tax revolt” across the country, important for Republican Party ideology

Boosted use of the initiative process Decreased money for local government, especially for

education Requires 2/3’s vote to raise taxes

Gives minority party (Republicans) leverage

Recent earthquakes triggered by direct democracy Prop 98 (passed 1988) requires 40% of state budget for K-

14 (response to prop 13) Term Limits (passed1990) imposed on state elected officials Three strikes (passed 1994) requires 25+ years for third

felony after two violent felonies Recall of Governor Davis and replacement by Arnold

Schwarzenegger in 2003 Open primary system and districts drawn by citizen

commission (passed 2010) Raise taxes for schools, Prop 30 (passed 2012)

Rolling Earthquakes Continuing growth and diversification of

population People move from US states (“rust belt”) to CA Waves of immigrants from Mexico, Korea, Vietnam,

China, and Central/South American countries California very diverse California will be majority Latino state by 2050

Latinos will be the largest group in the next few years Pattern shown in slide at start of Chapter 1 likely to

continue

Direct DemocracyCalifornia Government

Chapter 3

Direct Democracy in California Initiative, referendum and recall first instituted as part

of Los Angeles city charter in 1903 In 1911 California voter’s approved the following

referenda put forward by the state legislature (the legislature was dominated by progressives at the time) Proposition 7: Initiative and Referendum Proposition 8: Recall These apply to state and local governments At the same election proposition 4 gave Women the right to

vote

California’s Hybrid Political System Representative Democracy is

combined with Direct Democracy Elected representatives in the

legislature and executive branch make laws & public policies

Voters also directly participate in making laws

At state and local levels

Three Aspects of Direct Democracy• Initiative Process

– Citizens may propose laws or constitutional amendments and vote on them

• Referendum (plural = “referenda”) – Two Types:– 1) Bills passed by the legislature which must be

approved by the people (compulsory referenda)– 2) Voters may reject a law passed by the legislature

and signed by the governor (petition referenda)• Recall

– Voters may remove an elected official from office

Initiative Process Generally• Californians use it more than any other state

(but Oregon and Colorado are close rivals)• Expensive to qualify measures: about $2

million• Many subjects:

– Government structure and processes– Taxation– Immigration– Social welfare– Public morality (drugs; abortion)– Criminal justice– Etc.

Stages of the Initiative Process1. Preparation Stage

Write initiative, submit to Attorney General (AG) with $200

AG’s office assigns it a title and writes objective summary of initiative

2. Qualification Stage Gather signatures: about 1 million to ensure enough

are valid (more signatures required for constitutional initiative than statute initiative)

Secretary of State reports county verification of signatures & certifies measure for ballot

3. Campaigning Stage

Enacting an Initiative Majority (50% + 1) Yes vote needed to pass Theoretically goes into effect immediately, But if there is a powerful opposition, they often

challenge the initiative in court and the initiative may be “stayed” until the court (State and sometimes U.S.) reaches a decision

Courts can Remove “stay”: state that initiative is constitutional Nullify all or part of an initiative Example: Proposition 187, prohibiting illegal immigrants

from receiving social services (1994) Most provisions of the law were declared unconstitutional

because they conflicted with the U.S. Constitution Opponents may attempt to pass an initiative in the

future to nullify it

Referenda: Two Types Compulsory Referenda: Most common are

bonds or constitutional amendments proposed by the legislature Voters must approve state borrowing over $300,000 Tend to be in the BILLIONS of dollars to fund large

infrastructure projects Example High speed rail in 2008: $9.9 billion

Petition Referenda: Citizens may reject all or parts of a law passed by legislature and signed by governor

Signatures must be collected and verified Same signature requirement as an initiative to create a

law

The Recall Voters may remove state and local officials Proponents must gather signatures equal to a

percentage of votes cast in last election for that official’s office

Proponents have 5 months to collect signatures Very rare statewide: succeeded only once in

California (Gray Davis, 2003) More common at local level (school board and

city council are the most common)

Local Direct Democracy Citizens may propose local laws

For cities or municipalities, and for counties Most common local initiatives pertain to:

Government & political processes Taxation and bonds Business & labor regulations Land Use

Unlike state initiatives, local officials may avoid a vote (which can be costly) by adopting the initiative

Consequences of Hybrid Democracy

Piecemeal reforms target parts of a problem rather than the whole system Results in fragmented, incomplete solutions

Compromise is difficult Initiatives do not encourage negotiation;

they represent a “take it or leave it” choice to voters

Well-funded special interests are empowered Initiative process is costly

Consequences of Hybrid Democracy People have more governing power

Citizens do have the power to take action on issues the legislature might avoid Example: Term Limits

Citizens have power to act on issues the parties are “stalemated” over Example: Open Primaries and Redistricting

Consequences of Hybrid Democracy

The California Constitution is much longer than the U.S. Constitution The California constitution is more detailed

California Constitution is easier to amend than the U.S. Constitution

Link to California Constitution table of contents: http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/const-toc.html

Landmark Initiatives 1966-2010

Recent Initiatives and Upcoming Elections

Results from previous elections http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_California_ba

llot_propositions_2010-2019 If two proposition covering similar subjects pass,

the one with more votes goes into effect Example: the 11/6/12 election had two

initiatives on school funding Initiatives in circulation and for future

elections: http://sos.ca.gov/elections/elections_j.htm

The Continuing Controversy over Direct Democracy

Criticisms Excessively Complicated and Fragmented Those with Money Have Too Much Power “Take It or Leave It” Nature Sometimes Declared Unconstitutional

Even so, direct democracy is popular with voters in California