Oct.29

electoral-vote.com

Dem 53

Ties 4

GOP 43

Some Ballot Issues to Watch

Candidates are not the only choices voters are being offered next week. There are many ballot initiatives in many states. Here is a quick rundown of some of the ones that are attracting the most attention.

• Transgender Issues One issue that Republicans are pushing for all it's worth is trans girls on girls' sports teams. With inflation running rampant, wars in Iran, Ukraine, and Gaza, and the vast majority of voters saying the country is heading in the wrong direction, it's nice to know how much Republicans care about girls' sports. Pity they don't care much about girls being raped in Ohio.
  
  Arizona already has a law restricting people playing on girls' or womens' sports teams in public schools to people marked "female" on their original birth certificates. A referendum next week would expand the mandate to private schools and require access to bathrooms and locker rooms to be segregated by gender at birth. Nebraska already has that but the ballot measure would enshrine it in the state Constitution, making it impossible for the legislature to ever change it. The measure in Washington state would require aspiring athletes to undergo an inspection by a healthcare provider to determine what precisely was inside their underpants. Colorado and Missouri have ballot measures that would ban transition-related surgeries for minors.
  
  
• Abortion That old favorite never dies. In Missouri, voters already approved abortion access by ballot initiative 2 years ago. Now state legislators want to reverse the ban, so they put up a new ballot measure to do so. In Idaho, by contrast, pro-choice groups put up a measure to make abortion legal up to 24 weeks of pregnancy.
  
  
• Voting Rights In California and Nevada, Republicans championed a measure that would require absentee voters to supply the last four digits of their drivers' licence or Social Security number to vote. Arizona has an initiative that would require a photo ID for absentee voting, but doesn't specify exactly how that would work.
  
  
• Redistricting The redistricting wars are far from over. We are just now starting the 2028 round. In Missouri, voters are being asked to approve a new map that would eliminate the state's only Democratic House district. In Maryland, the reverse is true. Voters are being asked to approve a map that would eliminate the state's only Republican House district. Both of these measure would take effect in 2028.
  
  
• Miscellaneous Prop. 40 in California would impose a 5% wealth tax on the assets of the 250 billionaires who were living in California on Jan. 1, 2026. Most of the revenue would go to healthcare programs. Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) was for the measure until his presidential campaign revved up and he began asking billionaires for campaign contributions. Then he suddenly discovered how the billionaires felt about it. In fact, they have pumped over $600 million into defeating the measure. This would not be the first tax based on wealth in the U.S. Many muncipalities have a property tax on the value of one's real estate, which is a wealth tax. Only the California one includes all assets, not just real estate. Taxes like that are common in Europe.
  
  In Montana, a measure would bar corporations from spending money on elections. This would could be a way to undermine the 2010 Citizens United decision that corporations (and unions) could spend unlimited money on campaigns. It will surely be challenged in court if it passes.
  
  Voters in Alaska will be asked if they want to junk the state's top-four primary followed by a ranked-choice general election. If passed, the state would revert to partisan primaries.
  
  In Alabama, a measure would require schools to play the national anthem at least once a week. In Idaho, a measure asks people to choose what they would like as the official state gun: Winchester Model 1894, Winchester Model 1873, 1873 Colt Single Action Army Revolver, M1 Garand rifle, Colt M1911 .45 automatic Colt pistol, or Remington Model 700 bolt-action rifle. Propositions like these are the 2026 version of the 2004 gay marriage ballot question, meant to motivate very particular kinds of voters to get to the polls.

There are many more ballot measure, but these will get the most attention. (V)