Proposition 209 in California

Proposition 209 was perhaps the most contentious issue on the California ballot in 1996, a voter-initiated proposition that would change the California Constitution. The title of the proposition as it appeared on the ballot was "Prohibition against Discrimination or Preferential Treatment by state and Other Public Entities." Opponents of the proposition had tried to challenge the right of the State Attorney General to name the proposition in this manner, claiming that instead it should be identified not as prohibiting discrimination but as allowing it, not as eliminating preferential treatment as such but as eliminating affirmative action programs. The courts disagreed and let the title stand, and some observers believe that from that point the proposition was assured of passage. Surveys showed that the people of California support affirmative action and so might not have voted for a bill that stated it would end affirmative action. Whether the proposition does or does not end affirmative action remains a point of contention, and as with most voter-initiated legislation, this law will be decided ultimately in the courts.

One of the reasons why successful propositions end up in the courts so often is that they may be worded so simply that they do not make their definitions clear, or because the writers of the initiative have included more than one subject in contravention of California law, or because how the law is to be applied is no clear from the law itself. Propon

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ties including tutoring, outreach, and mentoring ("California Ballot Pamphlet" 32). During the weeks prior to the election, opponents of Proposition 209 continued to convey to voters the idea that passage of the proposition would mean an end to affirmative action, and while the proposition started with a tremendous lead in polls, that lead was reduced right up until election day. However, Proposition 209 still passed with a vote of 54.3 percent for to 45.71 percent against (Lesher A1). Exit polls conducted by the Los Angeles Times demonstrated how the vote broke down by race and other distinctions. The poll showed that a healthy majority of African Americans and Latino voters opposed the measure. Democrats also opposed it by smaller margins, while Republicans favored it (Stall and Morain A1). Passage of the proposition led almost immediately into the court system as both sides filed lawsuits on the issue the day after the election. Two court suits were brought by proponents, one by supporters and one by Governor Pete Wilson, each asking that the proposition be implemented immediately. Advocates to date have identified only a few programs they want to target for elimination, and Wilson gave state agencies three weeks to m

Category: Government - P