April 05, 2012 05:53 PM UTC

Onslaught Of (Mostly) Nutty Ballot Initiatives Takes Shape

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• by: Colorado Pols

With Doug Bruce out of the picture, others are stepping up in the hopes of packing the 2012 Colorado ballot with new fringy initiatives–this year’s version of the “Bad 3” in 2010. here’s a sample of one of several…interesting ballot measures approved by the Title Board yesterday:

The AP explains:

[The] election proposal would end party primaries in favor of general elections to determine the top two candidates, regardless of party. If it were to become law, the two candidates on a November ballot could both be from the same party, [Pols emphasis] and there would be no requirement to join a political party in order to participate in primary elections.

[Elise] Van Grinsven, owner of a vinyl decor business, says family discussions on how to improve the country sparked the plans.

“The ideas just came up,” Van Grinsven said.

That’s the creative one, we guess, but the others are no less radical:

One proposed ballot initiative aims to eliminate real property taxes. Another would allow Colorado residents to carry concealed weapons without a permit. They are also proposing changes that would reorganize how Colorado conducts elections and organizes its state Senate.

It’s an open question as to whether or not these initiatives will actually make the ballot–and these proponents still have the opportunity to comply with election law regarding signature gathering and expense disclosure. These are ways they can avoid the nasty stigma the “Bad 3” initiatives acquired from flagrant contempt for the law.

Honestly, we really do hope they do follow the law unlike Doug Bruce–because it would be preferable to have an honest debate about taking a wrecking ball to Colorado’s already struggling school finance model. Or creating weird one-party domination of state politics. Or letting everybody pack heat, or plunging the state into a costly civil rights legal challenge over Senate districts–any of this stuff. We don’t think the outcome of any of these is uncertain.

The AP also reports that Focus on the Family is working on a “religious freedom” initiative, and of course you already know you’ll be likely voting on legalized weed, possibly a few confusingly different ways–and for the third consecutive general election a “personhood” abortion ban! There is a possible progressive income tax measure that could muck things up with rationality, but we have no details yet. Until then, the ray of hope in all of this may be, we’re afraid,

The title board also approved three measures aimed at dissuading activists from changing the state constitution by tinkering with the voter-initiative process.