The Initiative Process and its Declining Agenda-setting Value

California adopted the initiative process in 1911 as a means to allow the electorate to enact laws or amend the state constitution without acting through representatives. The process was instituted in reaction to an unresponsive legislature dominated heavily by well‐financed and professional special interest groups. Since 1978, however, there has been a clear trend toward the “professionalization” of the initiative process in California. What was once a valuable agenda‐setting mechanism for citizens has increasingly become a tool of professional special interest groups. A survey of expenditures made in solely the qualification phase of statewide initiatives over time shows a growing dichotomy between those initiatives that qualify for the ballot and those that fail to qualify. Not only are dramatically more funds spent on behalf of successful qualification efforts, but these funds also are more likely to be spent on enlisting professional signature‐gathering services. The era of the “popular initiative” is coming to a close unless steps are taken to reduce the professionalization of its agenda‐setting function.