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There's no surprise that Attorney General Kamala Harris was elected to succeed Barbara Boxer in the U.S. Senate. The news is that California voters also approved legal marijuana, kept the death penalty and added limits on appeals, allowed bilingual education in schools, put restrictions on ammunition sales and rejected a law to require condom use in pornography.
And more. Remember, there were 17 measures on the state ballot.
Under Proposition 64, people 21 years old and up can grow six marijuana plants, possess or buy up to 28.5 grams, and smoke in private — as soon as Wednesday. Pot smoking will be banned anywhere tobacco smoking is banned by state law, while driving, and within 1,000 feet of a school, day-care center or youth center while children are present. Eventually, stores will be licensed to sell marijuana and the sales can be taxed.
It looks as if California voters have decided, as they always do, to retain the death penalty. Proposition 66 was also leading to put a time limit on appeals. They gave the day's biggest margin to Proposition 58, which reauthorizes bilingual education. They slapped a background check requirement on some ammunition sales, passed the cigarette tax and rejected the AIDS Health Foundation's bid to require condoms on male adult film performers everywhere in the state.
The voters went for Proposition 57, which will allow earlier release from prison of felons held on so-called nonviolent crimes. And they appear to be rejecting Proposition 61's limit on prescription drug prices.
In Los Angeles County, the results were coming in slowly. At a bit after midnight, just 29.65 percent of precincts were counted. More than 500,000 vote by mail ballots had been counted.
Kathryn Barger had a sizable lead in the open race for county supervisor in the 5th district, and Janice Hahn led in the 4th district.
Measure M, the sales tax increase for transit and freeway projects, needs two-thirds of votes cast and had that, but with under 30 percent of votes counted. Too close to call.
The LA city ballot measure to fund the construction of homeless housing, HHH, was running well ahead of the two-thirds vote it needed. JJJ, labor's measure to add a bunch of requirements on local residential projects, also was passing easily.
