Health, welfare and morals 3. Economic regulation 4. Environment 5. Tax 6. Criminal procedure and punishment 7. The database details these patterns by categorizing voter-approved initiatives by state, year, and subject matter. Initiative Litigation The second element of this database is post-election initiative litigation.
Many initiatives are challenged after the election in either state or federal court—or sometimes both—and many are invalidated either in part or in their entirety. Our research is continuing on initiative litigation in the other initiative states. District of Columbia got the initiative last in Seventeen of the twenty-three initiative states lie west of the Mississippi River.
Oregon was not the first state to get the initiative and referendum. But, the story of how the "I and R" were finally added to its state constitution illustrates how the progressives fought for their reforms in many states around the turn of the century.
Like many states in the 's, Oregon was largely in the hands of the wealthy corporations, particularly the railroads. The state government had become inefficient and corrupt. One journalist of the time described the Oregon state legislature as being filled with "briefless lawyers, farmless farmers, business failures, bar-room loafers, Fourth-of-July-orators, and political thugs.
Legislative sessions at Salem, the state capital, took place along with public drunkenness and flocks of prostitutes ready to offer their services to the lawmakers.
The economic depression of ruined many Oregon farmers. The farmers blamed Wall Street, the railroads, and their own corrupt state government.
Into this situation stepped a man with a strange name: William Simon U'Ren. Born in Wisconsin and educated in Colorado, U'Ren was a wanderer.
Over the years he had worked as a blacksmith, bookkeeper, and lawyer. When he arrived in Oregon in , U'Ren joined a group of reform minded farmers in Clackamas County. After reading about the Swiss experience with direct democracy, U'Ren launched a ten year crusade for an initiative and referendum, the "I and R," in Oregon. U'Ren organized a petition drive calling for an amendment to the state constitution that would provide for the "I and R.
Female teachers frequently spoke in favor of the "I and R" at meetings and social gatherings held in schoolhouses all over the state. When the legislative session met at Salem in it met every two years , U'Ren had 15, signatures on petitions calling for the "I and R. So, the lawmakers ignored U'Ren and his petitions. U'Ren decided to change his tactics. He later said, "I now decided to get the reforms by using our enemies' own methods-by fighting the devil with fire. After winning the election, he organized a revolt in the legislative session of U'Ren managed to put together a group of lawmakers who for one reason or another opposed the political leaders of the legislature.
Although U'Ren's group was in the minority, it refused to participate in any legislative business. The rebels even refused to take their oath of office. These actions effectively prevented a quorum, so lawmaking came to a standstill. Absolutely nothing happened during the entire legislative session of During the next regularly scheduled session of the state legislature, U'Ren again threatened to stop all official business unless the political bosses agreed to support his "I and R" constitutional amendment.
The politicians gave in and the legislature approved the amendment. However, constitutional amendments had to be passed by two succeeding legislative sessions before being submitted to the people for ratification.
So, U'Ren had to wait until before the "I and R" finally became part of the state constitution. However, by this time the initiative and referendum were so popular in the state that almost everyone was behind it. In the words of one journalist, it was a "quiet revolution. Alumni Volunteers The Boardroom Alumni. Curriculum Materials. Add Event. Main Menu Home. Election Central The Progressives and Direct Democracy The 's are often viewed today as a happy time period when Americans lived uncomplicated lives with few problems to worry about.
First of all, the 's was a time when a very few individuals and families made fantastic fortunes and lived the life of kings. Yet, the vast majority of Americans were barely getting by. Corruption and Reform During the early years of the new century, those individuals who tried to approach government with proposals to improve the lot of factory workers, farmers and small businessmen had little success.
The District of Columbia got the initiative last in For Discussion Who actually controlled many of the state legislatures at the turn of the century? What do you think was the single most important reform promoted by the progressives?
Where did the progressives get the idea for the initiative? Research the different forms of direct democracy used in this country. List any similarities you see between the Progressive Era and today? The initiative process is allowed in at least 24 states, but more than 60 percent of initiative activity has occurred in just six states: Arizona , California , Colorado , North Dakota , Oregon and Washington. Many initiatives do not reach the ballot. In California, according to political scientist Dave McCuan, only 26 percent of all initiatives filed made it to the ballot, and only 8 percent of those filed were adopted by the voters.
During the election cycle, more than initiatives were filed, and only 76 approximately 22 percent were placed on the ballot.
Initiatives steadily declined from a peak of from to a low of 87 from Since then, two prolific decades of initiative use have occurred: initiatives and initiatives. Also that year, a combined amount of more than 14, laws and resolutions were adopted by state legislators in those same states.
In , 61 statewide initiatives were on the ballots, the lowest in a decade. In , 76 initiatives made statewide ballots, 17 fewer than what appeared on the ballot in —but still consistent with the decade average of 73 initiatives per election cycle.
The constitutions of five states—Colorado, Maine, Mississippi, Ohio and Washington state—allow initiatives only during odd-numbered years. Therefore, only four initiatives were on statewide ballots in , two fewer than the number of initiatives appearing on the general election ballot. Ballotpedia features , encyclopedic articles written and curated by our professional staff of editors, writers, and researchers.
Click here to contact our editorial staff, and click here to report an error. Click here to contact us for media inquiries, and please donate here to support our continued expansion.
Share this page Follow Ballotpedia. What's on your ballot? Jump to: navigation , search. On this page: Historical foundations Populist and Progressive eras Modern movement. Citizen Lawmakers. Philadelphia: Temple University Press. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source. A constitutional convention passed a very limited initiative process in , and it was approved by voters. Their reply was overwhelmingly "yes," as shown here, but the legislature never followed that mandate.
Delaware is also the only state that does not require voters to approve of all of the changes to the state constitution. The legislature approved of less restrictive procedures proposed by reformers, which were placed on the ballot in and ratified by voters. There were two separate initiative amendments on the ballot: one giving voters the power to propose and enact initiative statutes laws and the other giving voters the power to propose and enact initiative amendments to the state constitution.
Blank votes count as a no vote against the amendment. Voters said "yes," but no change was made by the legislature. A comprehensive list of laws passed by state legislatures is unavailable.
Figures used to calculate answers provided by the National Conference of State Legislatures. Categories : History of ballot initiatives Pages with broken file links.
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