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92 S. Cal. L. Rev. 557 (2018-2019)
California Constitutional Law: Direct Democracy

handle is hein.journals/scal92 and id is 603 raw text is: CALIFORNIA CONSTITUTIONAL LAW: DIRECT DEMOCRACY DAVID A. CARRILLO,* STEPHEN M. DUVERNAY,t BENJAMIN GEVERCERT & MEGHAN FENZEL** The California electorate amended the state constitution in 1911 to reserve to itself the powers of initiative, referendum, and recall. Most research on direct democracy in California focuses on its political science effects. We consider the substantive constitutional issues the electorate's powers create and present a defense of direct democracy as a net positive force in California government. We review every California constitutional amendment to date, distinguishing between legislatively proposed amendments and initiative amendments. We solve the enduring mystery of how many times the California *. Lecturer in Residence and Executive Director of the California Constitution Center at the University of California, Berkeley School of Law; B.A. (1991), J.D. (1995), LL.M. (2007), and J.S.D. (2011), University of California, Berkeley. t. Senior Research Fellow, California Constitution Center; B.A., University of California, Berkeley; J.D., University of Notre Dame Law School. Mr. Duvernay is an attorney in private practice. 1. Senior Research Fellow, California Constitution Center; B.A., University of California, Santa Cruz; J.D., University of California, Davis. Mr. Gevercer is an attorney in private practice. **. Senior Research Fellow, California Constitution Center; B.A., Tufts University; M.A., New York University; J.D., University of California, Berkeley. Ms. Fenzel is an attorney in private practice. The views expressed herein are solely those of the authors. The authors presented an early draft of this Article at the Korea Legislation Research Institute conference on February 2, 2018 in Seoul, South Korea, as a primer on California constitutional law and the state's experience with direct democracy. Portions of this Article draw from the authors' previous work on these subjects, including: David A. Carrillo & Stephen M. Duvernay, California Constitutional Law: The Guarantee Clause and California's Republican Form of Government, 62 UCLA L. REV. Disc. 104 (2014); David A. Carrillo, Stephen M. Duvernay & Brandon V. Stracener, California Constitutional Law: Popular Sovereignty, 68 HASTINGS L.J. 731 (2017); David A. Carrillo & Danny Y. Chou, California Constitutional Law: Separation of Powers, 45 U.S.F. L. REV. 655 (2011); and David A. Carrillo & Stephen M. Duvernay, The California Judiciary, 7 CAL. J. POL. & POL'Y, no. 4, 2015, at 1. Thanks are due to our research assistants, the brothers Belcher, for their dedicated assistance on this project.