We did it! Prop. 30 wins, Prop. 32 loses

SAG/AFTRA “zombie lurch” in Los Angeles

Despite the fact that most students and children couldn’t vote, their voices were heard in victories for pro-public education issues and candidates. Californians passed Prop. 30, averting more cuts to the state’s education system, and defeated Prop. 32, retaining educators’ voice in the political process.

In declaring Prop. 30 a victory, Gov. Jerry Brown said, "I think [this is] the only place in America where a state actually said let's raise our taxes for our kids, for our schools, for our California dream.”

“We achieved a monumental victory for our students, our union and our State. Because of the outreach done by our members, California voters demonstrated their willingness to invest in our public schools and colleges and avoid $6 billion in additional mid-year cuts,” said CTA President Dean E. Vogel. “Our local communities will receive funding to keep police on the street, and our state can begin to pay down the wall of debt it’s amassed during the recession.”

Had Prop. 30 failed, public education would have faced a catastrophic $6 billion in trigger cuts, including half a billion from state colleges and universities. For some school districts, such as the state’s two largest, Los Angeles and San Diego Unified, those midyear cuts would have lopped as many as 20 days off the school year.

Voters also rejected Prop. 32, a deceptive ballot measure aimed at silencing educators, other workers and their unions.
“We sent a message that California is not for sale,” said Vogel. “This hard-fought victory for democracy exposed the real agenda of the corporate special interests behind Proposition 32. Those millionaires and billionaires never cared about the checks and balances of our democracy, only the checks they could write to buy even more political influence.”

Vogel thanked educators for playing a pivotal role in the election, making phone calls, ringing doorbells, wearing buttons, becoming human billboards, attending rallies and tweeting. Most of all, “you showed up at the polls, and you got your friends there, too,” Vogel said. “The voice of educators and other workers is stronger now from these victories, and we will continue to speak out and fight for our students, our schools and our profession.”

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