I’m not a fan, in principle, of the super-direct democracy of California’s ballot measures. One of the problems with letting un-elected citizens draft laws is that, often, a proposition success or failure isn’t even close to the final word. It was clear since the state Supreme Court ruled gay marriage legal in May and opponents responded with Proposition 8 that win or lose there would be lawsuits.
Same-sex marriage advocates have already vowed to take their case to court. Add that expense to the administrative costs of Prop. 8 and the $73 million for and against.
Not yet clear why Prop. 8, which had been losing in polls, passed. Ted Olsen at Christianity Today thinks Barack Obama, who opposed the measure but not gay marriage, helped:
But African-American Californians overwhelmingly supported Prop. 8, by a 7-to-3 margin. Black women (who made up 6% of the electorate) were even more supportive, telling exit pollsters they voted for the measure by a 3-to-1 margin.
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