The newest longshot ballot initiative has surfaced.
Meet Louis J. Marinelli and his organization Sovereign California.
They recently gained approved for signature gathering on a trio of initiatives that would attempt to begin a process that would make California an autonomous region of the United States. They envision something similar to Quebec in Canada or Catalona in Spain.
While two of the three initiatives are largely symbolic, changing the title of “Governor” to “President” and mandating that the flag of California be displayed in the first position over the national flag, the California Independence in Statewide Elections Act does have some teeth. In short, it would “prohibit a candidate, committee, or slate mailer organization from receiving political contributions from nonresidents of the State of California.”
Marinelli’s rationale for the effort revolves around California’s clout as a state, saying “With a population of over 38 million and the seventh largest economy in the world, California is more of a nation than a state and we believe it’s time for us to start acting like it.”
The initiatives have varying requirements as The President of California Act would be a constitutional amendment and requires more signatures — 585,407 registered voters compared to 365,880 registered voters. Lack of valid signatures disqualified of the also peculiar Six Californias initiative in 2014, so it will be worth keeping an eye on going forward.
The Sovereign California website can be found here.