Florida Supreme Court Agrees to Expedite Decision in Initiative Case

Posted on by June 12, 2009
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On June 11, the Florida Supreme Court agreed to expedite its decision in Florida Hometown Democracy v Browning. The case had been argued in January 2009. The issue is the constitutionality of a 2007 law that makes it possible for voters to delete their signatures after they have signed an initiative petition. The State Court of Appeals had ruled that the law violates the State Constitution, which gives the legislature the authority to pass laws to help implement the initiative process. The State Court of Appeals had said that means the legislature doesn’t have the authority to pass laws that hinder the initiative process.

Florida Hometown Democracy has been working for four years to collect enough signatures to qualify its initiative, which would require a popular vote in a locality before a new housing development can be approved. Florida law requires initiative petitions to be completed within 4 years. The 4 years runs out on June 22, 2009.

Pennsylvania Bill to Require Major Parties to Let Independents Vote in their Primaries

Posted on by June 12, 2009
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On June 10, Pennsylvania Representative Eugene DePasquale (D-York) introduced HB 1672. It provides that parties that hold primaries (i.e., those parties with registration of 15% or more) must let independent voters vote in their primaries. If the bill were to be signed into law, the only Pennsylvania voters would who not be able to vote in major party primaries would be members of minor parties. Under the bill, independents could choose which party primary to vote in. The bill has 9 co-sponsors.

Socialist Vote for Los Angeles Mayor in 2009 is Highest Since Before World War II

Posted on by June 12, 2009
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Los Angeles elects its Mayor in the spring of the odd years that follow presidential election years. The Socialist Workers Party has run a candidate for Mayor in all Los Angeles elections, starting in 1945, except that it didn’t run in 1997.

At the March 3, 2009 election, the Socialist Workers Party again ran a candidate for Mayor. Also, the new Party for Socialism and Liberation also ran a candidate for Mayor. The two candidates, together, polled 2.01% of the total in a 10-candidate field. Although that may seem to be a small percentage, it is the first time that socialist candidates for Mayor of Los Angeles, together, have polled that much, since the 1930’s.

Socialist Workers Party percentages for Mayor of Los Angeles have been: 1945 .21%, 1949 .38%, 1953 .73%, 1957 1.38%, 1961 .47%, 1965 .07%, 1969 .05%, 1973 .35%, 1977 .19%, 1981 .23%, 1985 .16%, 1989 .41%, 1993 .11%, 1997 no candidate, 2001 .16%, 2005 .48%.

The 2009 results are .90% for James Harris, Socialist Workers candidate; and 1.11% for Carlos Alvarez, Party for Socialism and Liberation candidate. The 2009 election had 10 candidates, 3 of whom had Spanish surnames.

The Socialist Workers Party and the Party for Socialism and Liberation are the only parties with “socialist” , “communist”, or “workers” in their names, that have run candidates for Mayor of Los Angeles since before World War II.

Legislative Term Limits Proposal Introduced in Massachusetts Legislature

Posted on by June 11, 2009
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On June 5, Massachusetts Representative Karyn Polito (R-Shrewsbury) introduced a proposed constitutional amendment to provide for legislative term limits. See this story. Although Massachusetts has the initiative for changing state laws, proponents of term limits can’t use the initiative, because term limits must be a constitutional amendment and the Massachusetts initiative procedure doesn’t apply to constitutional amendments. Polito’s bill doesn’t have a bill number yet.