EDITORIAL: Restrict initiatives? One professor prefers the Washington system
Washington, Oregon and California have what is known as 鈥渄irect democracy.鈥 That鈥檚 the political scientists鈥 term for the initiative and referendum. Voters can adopt state laws without help from the legislature.
The West Coast systems are not identical, though. One difference is that in Oregon and California, initiatives can be used to amend the state constitution. Voters in Washington can鈥檛 do that; they can only 鈥渋nitiate鈥 and approve statutes that have the same standing as laws passed by the legislature.
While this clearly is a difference, does it make much difference in practical effect?
Todd Donovan seems to think so. A political science professor at Western Washington University, Donovan wrote a column on this subject for The Oregonian a week before the midterm election.