Pubdate: Sat, 4 Dec 2010
Source: Orange County Register, The (CA)
Copyright: 2010 The Orange County Register
Contact:  http://www.ocregister.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/321
Author: Martin Wisckol
Referenced: The survey http://www.ppic.org/content/pubs/survey/S_1210MBS.pdf
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/topic/Proposition+19
Bookmark: http://mapinc.org/find?272 (Proposition 19)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?115 (Cannabis - California)

NOVEMBER VOTERS' 'BIG TURNOUT'? 44%

A higher percentage of the state's registered voters made it to the 
Nov. 2 polls than in any gubernatorial general election since 1994, 
when Republicans celebrated an even bigger victory as they took both 
the House and the Senate from Democrats.

Of course, California didn't help the GOP takeover of the House this 
time. The state became even more blue, maintaining Democratic 
majorities in both houses of the Legislature and in the congressional 
delegation, and sweeping every statewide office.

And while the 59.5 percent turnout among registered voters topped 
every gubernatorial election since 60.5 percent of voters turned out 
in 1994, it's hardly a number to crow about. Especially when you 
consider only 73 percent of eligible adults are registered, meaning 
just 43.6 percent of eligible adults cast ballots.

Registered voters in Orange County were far more active than the rest 
of the state in the 1994 (66.2 percent) and 1998 (61.4 percent) 
general elections, but they trailed the state turnout this year, with 
55.4 percent casting ballots.

More than half of those county votes were cast by mail ballots, a new 
record for a gubernatorial general election here.

Mail voting shot way up after the 2002 change of law, which 
eliminated the requirement that you had to provide a reason for why 
you couldn't make it to the polls if you wanted to be a permanent 
mail voter. In the 2002 general election, 29 percent of the county 
cast mail ballots. That had leaped to 48 percent in 2006, and crept 
up to 52 percent this time.

Marijuana Voters

A post-election survey found that 43 percent of voters said they were 
more enthusiastic than usual about voting in the November election, 
and 23 percent said they were equally enthusiastic as usual. The poll 
by the Public Policy Institute of California found that 29 percent of 
voters were less enthusiastic than usual.

Proposition 19, the failed measure to legalize marijuana, was 
unsurprisingly the ballot measure stirring the most interest, with 38 
percent of voters saying it was on the top of their list. Next was 
Proposition 23, the failed effort to delay implementation of the 
state's new greenhouse gas law, named by 16 percent of voters.

"Similar to Proposition 19, those who voted 'no' on Proposition 23 
are much more likely than those who voted 'yes' to call the outcome 
of the vote on the measure important," reads the PPIC report.

Those voting against Prop. 19 were Republicans (73 percent opposed), 
Latinos (60 percent), whites (53 percent), women (58 percent), and 
older voters (58 percent). Supporters included Democrats (56 
percent), independents (55 percent) and voters ages 18 34 (62 percent).

But there are indications that voters are growing wary of the state's 
initiative process, which some experts blame in part for budget 
difficulties because some past measures mandate spending.

"Two-thirds of voters said the wording of the initiatives on the 
ballot was too complicated or confusing," says the report. "And for 
the first time in a PPIC post-election survey, less than half say 
they have confidence in their fellow voters to make public policy 
decisions at the ballot box."  
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake