Defenders of Democracy Fail, Yet Again, to Convince the Polity

Matt Welch | May 19, 2009

Adapted from the San Francisco Chronicle, here is a chart showing the editorial endorsements of the top 11 California general-interest daily newspapers in advance of today's special-needs election, listed in order of enthusiasm. As you look at this festival of Yes Indeedies, keep in mind that the only proposition likely to pass is 1F, which would deny pay raises to elected politicians when the state is running a deficit (which is to say, every year until Christ returns, amen). I haven't seen such a convincing demonstration of editorial board impotence since maybe Antonio Villaraigosa's first failed attempt at the L.A. mayor's office.

Proposition:	1A	1B	1C	1D	1E	1F
San Francisco Chronicle	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Los Angeles Daily News	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Los Angeles Times	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Sacramento Bee	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Fresno Bee	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Santa Rosa Press Democrat	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
San Jose Mercury News	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes
Riverside Press-Enterprise	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Contra Costa Times	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Orange County Register	No	No	No	No	No	No
San Diego Union-Tribune	No	No	No	No	No	No

UPDATE: California resident Ken Layne has an altogether more useful voter guide.