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Tag: initiatives and referenda

Initiative signature requirement re-set

Initiative signature requirement re-set

The task of qualifying an initiative or referendum for the Washington ballot just got a little harder. The state Constitution pegs the number of signatures required for an initiative at 8 percent of the most recent vote for governor. The requirement for a referendum — forcing a public vote on something the Legislature has passed, as in the recent R-74 on gay marriage — is 4 percent of the governor vote. In returns certified Wednesday, votes cast for governor this…

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Voters wild about `direct democracy’

Voters wild about `direct democracy’

The use of  the initiative and referendum process ebbs and flows from year to year, seeming to track the economy and whether interest groups believe Olympia is attentive to their issues.  This year is one of those high-watermark years, with a record 75 initiatives to the people  filed and six headed for a statewide vote after meeting the significant signature requirement. According to a new tally from the state Elections Division Thursday, 2,230,902 signatures were submitted this year in support…

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Initiative drives = more voter registrations

Initiative drives = more voter registrations

As has been the case in previous years, efforts by various initiative sponsors to gather enough signatures has a side effect – a sharp increase in new voter registrations in Washington. In the past two months, nearly 10,200 new registrations have come in thanks to initiative drives. In a typical week, our Elections Division receives between 300-400 new registrations, or close to 1,800 a month. Here is how the initiative drives affect voter registrations: To sign a petition sheet for…

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R-71 petitions: Supreme Court sets April hearing

R-71 petitions: Supreme Court sets April hearing

The U.S. Supreme Court has set an April 28 hearing date for a nationally watched public records-elections case arising from Washington’s practice of allow public release of initiative and referendum petitions under terms of the state’s voter-approved Public Records Act. The high court last month agreed to hear an appeal brought by opponents of Washington’s new “everything but marriage” domestic partnership law.  Now the court has scheduled the oral arguments for Wednesday morning, April 28, the last case currently docketed…

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Another round of Eyman vs. Legislature begins

Another round of Eyman vs. Legislature begins

Groundhog Day might be February 2, but for Tim Eyman and our office’s Elections staff, it might as well be moved to January. In what is usually an annual event, the “I-Man” filed his latest initiative this morning in the Secretary of State’s Executive Office, flanked by several of his longtime supporters, plus Republican state Senators Pam Roach and Janea Holmquist. Called the “Save The 2/3’s Vote For Tax Increases,” Eyman’s proposal could be dubbed “The Return of Initiative 960.”…

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