On Sunday, top California Democrats announced support for a proposal that would ask voters to crack down on retail theft in the state.
The proposal would escalate the consequences of the crime of shoplifting for repeat offenders and directly compete on the November ballot with a similar, stricter effort supported by a coalition of business groups.
Last-Minute Plan
The Associated Press reports that this ballot measure push is being seen as a “last-minute plan” to compete with the other initiative supported by law enforcement, a coalition of businesses, and local officials that would crack down on shoplifters and drug deals.
California Democrats hope to put the proposal up for a vote quickly and deliver it to Governor Gavin Newsom to sign before a Wednesday deadline ahead of July 4.
Previous Initiative
This latest initiative by California Democrats competes with the business group proposal already on the November ballot. This previous initiative would turn the possession of fentanyl into a felony which lawmakers think will disproportionately impact the poorest Californians.
The Democrat proposal also increases penalties for shoplifting and fentanyl dealers but is less severe.
Proposition 47
At the heart of the dispute between the two proposals is the rolling back of Proposition 47. The business retailer proposal wants to roll back parts of the Prop 47 ballot measure passed in the state in 2014 that reduced some theft and drug possession offenses from felonies to misdemeanors.
Democrats, including Governor Newsom, want to keep Prop 47 intact and have resisted pressure to put crime reforms in front of voters.
Political Considerations
According to AP, Democrats are also concerned about the tougher measure from retail groups being on the ballot because it may increase turn out for Republican and conservative voters in the November election.
While California is firmly a blue state, an influx of conservative voters could affect the outcomes of contested House races and which party has control of Congress.
A Sham
On X, California Assemblyman Joe Patterson slammed the last-minute attempt of California Democrats to try to stop reforms for Proposition 47.
“Democrats just intro’d their attempt to deceive voters. SB 1381 is @CAgovernor @GavinNewsom’s hellbent attempt to kill true Prop 47 reforms and intentionally confuse voters. a sham. It happened late on a Sunday, hoping you’re sleeping. Do #caleg Dems want you to be safe or not?” said Patterson.
Newsom’s Power
Ashely Zavala, a California capitol correspondent, posted on X how this move showcased how Newsom’s control over the state’s legislature.
“Gov. Newsom’s power over CA Legislative Democrats- in the separate but equal branch of government- on full display. On July 4 eve, at 7:30pm-ish, they’ll vote on his last-minute, crime-related ballot initiative meant to compete with one he does not like,” Zavala said.
Majority Vote
According to Zavala’s reporting, lawmakers drew up the bill to only need a majority vote in the legislature instead of a ⅔ consensus.
“Multiple sources tell me Newsom spent weekend gathering up support for initiative, meeting with various groups of lawmakers between Friday and this afternoon. Because of the way this bill is written, it only needs a simple majority vote, instead of the challenging ⅔,” said Zavala.
What Happens If Both Ballot Measures Pass?
If both of the retail crackdown initiatives pass, only the one with the most votes will go into effect, giving an incentive for government Democrats to make sure that theirs is the one to win.
There is also a chance that the retail business group-backed proposal could be invalidated by a court, in which case the Democrat legislature-backed effort would go into effect.
Deep Fake Reforms
California Assembly GOP leader James Gallagher criticized the move by Democrats to subvert the previous initiative that had broad support and received over 900,000 citizen signatures.
“Recall again that all year @GavinNewsom and these same Democrats have said Prop 47 DID NOT need to be reformed. They tried to stop the citizen initiative all year. Now they are doing their own Deep Fake Reform initiative at the very last minute with only 72 hours notice. The initiative was circulated for months and had well over 900,000 citizen signatures,” said Gallagher on X.
Confusing for Voters
If the legislature proposal passes Newsom’s desk, there will be two similar measures on the same ballot in November which could have the effect of confusing voters.
“In an unbelievable move, Gavin Newsom and Democrat leadership have proposed a weaker crime initiative to compete with the one already on the November ballot. This is a blatant attempt to undermine the will of the people,” said state Senate Minority Leader Brian Jones in an X post.
Manipulating the Ballot Box
Jones accused Democrat leadership of trying to manipulate voters who he says have already sent a clear message about what they want.
“Over 900,000 Californians signed the Homelessness, Drug Addiction, and Retail Theft initiative to fix the Californian Crime Crisis. The overwhelming support shows that this is what the people want,” said Jones. “Now, with only 72 hours notice, Democrat leadership is pushing a weaker initiative to confuse and manipulate voters at the ballot box.”
