Webwatch: Initiatives and referenda in the forthcoming US elections

03/11/2008

Amidst the festival of democracy that is the US presidential election, an often overlooked electoral contest occurs in the form of initiatives and referenda for�state constitutional and legislative amendments. Some of these intiatives have been known to emerge as contentious 'law reform' proposals in other countries - such as 'Megan's Law' for registering sex offenders. This year, Californians will be voting on, amongst other things,�Proposition 8 to amend the state constitution to eliminate the right of same sex couples to marry. The National Conference of State Legislatures maintains the Ballot Measures Database, a fully searchable collection of referenda from elections both past and present.

3 November 2008