Washington 2019 ballot measures

Elections in Washington, 2019

• Primary: No statewide races
• General election: Nov. 5
• Voter registration deadline: None
• Early voting: N/A
• Absentee voting deadline: N/A

• Online registration: Yes
• Same-day registration: Yes
• Voter ID: N/A
• Poll times: N/A

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2019 Washington Ballot Measures
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2019 U.S. state ballot measures
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In 2019, 15 statewide ballot measures appeared on ballot in Washington on November 5, 2019, including three binding statewide ballot measures and 12 non-binding advisory votes.

HIGHLIGHTS

Referendum 88 required a statewide vote on I-1000 (an initiative to allow affirmative action that was approved by the legislature), meaning a yes vote on R-88 was a vote to approve I-1000 and allow affirmative action policies in Washington and a no vote on R-88 was a vote in favor of rejecting I-1000 and continuing to ban certain affirmative action policies in Washington. The measure was rejected.

The state legislature referred one constitutional amendment to the 2019 ballot. The amendment, which was approved, authorized the Washington State Legislature, during periods of catastrophic incidents that are considered emergencies, to pass bills that address the succession of powers and duties of public offices when the offices' incumbents and legal successors are unavailable for carrying out the office.

I-976, the $30 car tabs measure, was approved by voters.

Twelve tax advisory votes were on the ballot. These were nonbinding questions that advised the legislature to repeal or maintain bills passed in the 2019 legislative session that increased taxes. Voters voted in favor of advising the legislature to maintain three bills and repeal the other nine.

On the ballot

Type	Title	Subject	Description	Result
VR	Referendum 88	Affirmative action	Upholds or rejects the legislature's approval of Initiative 1000, which authorizes affirmative action by the state	d
ITL	Initiative 976	Taxes and Transportation	Limits annual registration renewal fees to $30 for vehicles under 10,000 pounds; other restrictions on vehicle taxes and fees	a/ot
LRCA	Senate Joint Resolution 8200	Legislature	Authorizes Legislature to pass legislation for government continuation during catastrophic incidents	a
AQ	Advisory Vote 20	Taxes and Healthcare	Advises legislature to either repeal or maintain House Bill 1087, which was designed to levy 0.58% tax on wages to fund a program for long-term healthcare services	d
AQ	Advisory Vote 21	Taxes	Advises legislature to either repeal or maintain House Bill 1324, which was designed to extend a surcharge on timber products through July 2045, which was otherwise set to expire in June 2024	d
AQ	Advisory Vote 22	Taxes and Environment	Advises legislature to either repeal or maintain House Bill 1652, which was designed to require producers of interior or exterior architectural paint sold in containers of 5 gallons or less to fund and take part in programs related to paint waste management	d
AQ	Advisory Vote 23	Taxes and Tobacco	Advises legislature to either repeal or maintain House Bill 1873, which was designed to levy a tax on e-cigarettes and vapor products	a
AQ	Advisory Vote 24	Taxes and Education	Advises legislature to either repeal or maintain House Bill 2158, which creates and funds the Workforce Education Investment Account, which was designed to fund higher education programs through a tax on certain business activities	d
AQ	Advisory Vote 25	Taxes and Banking	Advises legislature to either repeal or maintain House Bill 2167, which was designed to impose an additional tax on certain financial institutions	d
AQ	Advisory Vote 26	Taxes	Advises legislature to either repeal or maintain Senate Bill 5581, which was designed to apply retail sales taxes on online retailers	d
AQ	Advisory Vote 27	Taxes	Advises legislature to either repeal or maintain Senate Bill 5993, which was designed to increase taxes on petroleum products	d
AQ	Advisory Vote 28	Taxes	Advises legislature to either repeal or maintain Senate Bill 5997, which was designed to limit the tax exemptions that residents from other U.S. states and Canada can receive while in Washington	a
AQ	Advisory Vote 29	Taxes and Property	Advises legislature to either repeal or maintain Senate Bill 5998, which was designed to increase the excise tax on real property	d
AQ	Advisory Vote 30	Taxes	Advises legislature to either repeal or maintain Senate Bill 6004, which was designed to increase the business and occupation tax on specified tour operators and travel agents	d
AQ	Advisory Vote 31	Taxes	Advises legislature to either repeal or maintain Senate Bill 6016, which was designed to increase the business and occupation tax on specified international investment management services	a

Approved by the legislature

See also: Initiatives to the Legislature

Initiative 1000, an Initiative to the Legislature, was approved by the legislature and therefore did not appear on the 2019 ballot.

Type	Number	Subject	Description
ITL	Initiative 1000	Affirmative action	Allows the state to implement affirmative action without using quotas or preferential treatment; creates the Governor's Commission on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Getting measures on the ballot

Citizens of Washington may initiate legislation as either a direct state statute - called Initiative to the People (ITP) in Washington - or indirect state statute - called Initiative to the Legislature (ITL) in Washington. In Washington, citizens also have the power to repeal legislation via veto referendum. Citizens may not initiate constitutional amendments. The Washington State Legislature, however, may place legislatively referred constitutional amendments on the ballot with a two-thirds (66.67%) vote in each chamber.

The last day to submit signatures for Initiatives to the Legislature was January 4, 2019. A total of 259,622 valid signatures were required to certify an Initiative to the Legislature.

The first day to file petitions for Initiatives to the People was January 5, 2019. A total of 259,622 valid signatures were required to qualify an ITP for the ballot. The last day to submit signatures for Initiatives to the People was July 5, 2019.

For veto referendums, the number of required valid signatures is 129,811. For referendums, signatures must be filed with the secretary of state within 90 days after the adjournment of the legislative session at which the targeted legislation was passed.

The 2019 legislative session started on January 14, 2019, and was expected to adjourn on April 28, 2019, during which time the Washington State Legislature had the opportunity to place legislative referrals on the ballot.

Legislative referrals

Referral of 2019 measures

The state legislature referred one constitutional amendment to the 2019 ballot. The amendment, which was approved, authorized the Washington State Legislature, during periods of catastrophic incidents that are considered emergencies, to pass bills that address the succession of powers and duties of public offices when the offices' incumbents and legal successors are unavailable for carrying out the office.

Washington Government Continuation Legislation for Catastrophic Incidents Amendment				Democrats	Republicans
Senate:	Required: 33	Yes votes: 37 (75.51%)	No votes: 11 (22.45%)	Yes: 26; No: 2	Yes: 11; No: 9
House:	Required: 66	Yes votes: 91 (92.86%)	No votes: 7 (7.14%)	Yes: 57; No: 0	Yes: 34; No: 7

Summary of campaign contributions

See also: Ballot measure campaign finance, 2019

The following chart illustrates how much support and opposition committees had amassed in campaign contributions for each measure on the ballot:

Note: In some cases committees were registered to support or oppose multiple propositions. Ballotpedia lists the total sum that all committees registered to support or oppose each proposition have received in contributions. This means that the sum of all contributions in the chart below is higher than the total amount contributed.

Ballot Measure:	Support contributions:	Opposition contributions:	Outcome:
Washington Referendum 88	$1,885,431.50	$1,523,616.07	d
Washington Advisory Vote 28	$0.00	$0.00	a
Washington Senate Joint Resolution 8200	$0.00	$0.00	a
Washington Advisory Vote 23	$0.00	$0.00	a
Washington Advisory Vote 24	$0.00	$0.00	d
Washington Advisory Vote 25	$0.00	$0.00	d
Washington Advisory Vote 20	$0.00	$0.00	d
Washington Advisory Vote 27	$0.00	$0.00	d
Washington Advisory Vote 26	$0.00	$0.00	d
Washington Advisory Vote 31	$0.00	$0.00	a
Washington Advisory Vote 22	$0.00	$0.00	d
Washington Advisory Vote 29	$0.00	$0.00	d
Washington Initiative 976	$695,348.94	$5,213,578.43	a/ot

Media endorsements

The table below records the endorsements of ballot measures (excluding advisory votes) that were made by Washington media editorial boards. Visit the measure articles (linked at the top of the chart) to read what the editorial boards wrote regarding each measure.

If you are aware of a media editorial that is missing from the chart, please email editor@ballotpedia.org.

Media	I-976 ($30 car tabs)	R-88 (affirmative action)	SJR 8200
The Seattle Times	d	a	a
The Union-Bulletin	d	a	a
The Columbian	d	a	a
The Tacoma News Tribune	d	a	tc
The Herald	d	tc	tc
The Olympian	tc	a	tc
The Yakima Herald-Republic	tc	a	tc
The Wall Street Journal	tc	d	tc

Historical facts

See also: List of Washington ballot measures and History of Initiative & Referendum in Washington

• A total of 130 measures appeared on statewide ballots in Washington from 1995 to 2018.
• From 1995 to 2018, the number of measures on statewide ballots ranged from two to nine.
• Between 1996 and 2018, an average of six measures appeared on the ballot in Washington during even-numbered years.
• Between 1995 and 2018, about 57.69 percent (75 of 130) of the total number of measures that appeared on statewide ballots were approved, and about 42.31 percent (55 of 130) were defeated.
• Between 1995 and 2017, 60 measures appeared on the ballot during odd-numbered years. Fifty-eight percent (35) were approved and 42 percent (30) were defeated. An average of five measures appeared on the ballot during even numbered years between 1995 and 2017.

Washington statewide ballot measures, 1995-2018
Years	Total number	Approved	Percent approved	Defeated	Percent defeated	Annual average	Annual median	Annual minimum	Annual maximum
Even years	70	40	57.14%	30	42.86%	5.83	5.0	3	9
Odd years	60	35	58.33%	25	41.67%	5.0	5.0	2	9
All years	130	75	57.69%	55	42.31%	5.42	5.0	2	9

Potential measures

Referendum measures

See also: Veto referendum

Signatures for veto referendum petitions targeting laws passed in the 2019 regular legislative session were due on July 27, 2019. Signatures for one of five veto referendums filed in 2019 were submitted, and the measure was certified for the ballot.

Initiatives to the People

See also: Initiatives to the People

Signatures for 2019 Initiatives to the People were due on July 5, 2019. Signatures were not submitted for any of the proposed/filed initiatives, therefore, they failed to qualify for the ballot.

Not on the ballot

Below is a list of measures that reached a certain point in the initiative process but failed to qualify for the ballot.

Type	Number	Subject	Description	Status
VR	Referendum 89	Education	Seeks to refer to the people certain sections of Senate Bill 5091 which concern special education funding
ITL	Initiative 978	Firearms	Raises the minimum age to purchase firearms or ammunition to 21, with exceptions
ITL	Initiative 1002	Marijuana	Prohibits marijuana cultivation, processing, and sales in residential zones
ITL	Initiative 1003	Education	Changes special education funding requirements
ITP	Initiative 1650	Taxes	Prohibits state and local governments from enacting income taxes
VR	Referendum Measure 80	Salaries of government officials	Asks voters to approve or reject salary increases for state elected officials set by the Washington Citizens' Commission on Salaries for Elected Officials
LRSS	Permanent Daylight Saving Time Measure	Time	Permits the adoption of permanent daylight saving time
ITP	Initiative 1648	Taxes and Direct democracy	Requires tax increases to expire after one year unless approved by voters
ITP	Initiative 1651	Term limits	Enacts term limits for local officials
ITP	Initiative 1645 and 1652	Education	Amend the state's Public Records Act
ITP	Initiative 1654 and 1655	Campaign finance and Government accountability	Prohibits the use of public funds and staff time from being used to gather political money, and prohibits comingling public funds and political funds
ITP	Initiatives 1656 and 1663	Education	Changes special education funding requirements
ITP	Initiative 1657	Wages and pay	Sets minimum compensation requirements at one-eighth of those of the highest-paid employees and other compensation and benefit requirements
ITP	Initiative 1658	Taxes	Repeals multiple provisions in state statute establishing or relating to excise taxes, including sales taxes, business taxes, and fuel taxes
ITP	Initiative 1659	Marijuana	Prohibits marijuana cultivation, processing, and sales in residential zones
ITP	Initiative 1660	Transportation	Removes the authorization for express toll lanes on Interstate 405 between the junctions with Interstate 5 on the north end and NE 6th Street in the city of Bellevue on the south end
ITP	Initiative 1661	Healthcare	Creates the Whole Washington Health Trust " to ensure all Washington residents can enroll in nonprofit health insurance coverage providing an essential set of health benefits"
ITP	Initiatives 1662 and 1668	Forests and parks	Requires Fish and Wildlife Commissioners to be elected rather than appointed by the governor and confirmed by the senate, other changes
ITP	Initiatives 1664 and 1667	Forests and parks	Reorganizes the Fish and Wildlife Commission; furloughs fish biologists and replaces them with ecological specialists; other changes
ITP	Initiative 1665	Environment	Concerns invasive species
ITP	Initiative 1666	Education	Prohibits seclusion and physical restraint of students as punishment in schools
ITP	Initiative 1669	Government accountability	Allows civil action to challenge the constitutionality of a law or to "abate a violation of state and federal legal rights or a failure to act"
ITP	Initiative 1670	Marijuana	Prohibits the cultivation, processing, and sales of marijuana in areas zoned as residential

State profile

Demographic data for Washington
	Washington	U.S.
Total population:	7,160,290	316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):	66,456	3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:	77.8%	73.6%
Black/African American:	3.6%	12.6%
Asian:	7.7%	5.1%
Native American:	1.3%	0.8%
Pacific Islander:	0.6%	0.2%
Two or more:	5.2%	3%
Hispanic/Latino:	12%	17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:	90.4%	86.7%
College graduation rate:	32.9%	29.8%
Income
Median household income:	$61,062	$53,889
Persons below poverty level:	14.4%	11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Washington. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Presidential voting pattern

See also: Presidential voting trends in Washington

Washington voted for the Democratic candidate in all seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.

Pivot Counties (2016)

Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, five are located in Washington, accounting for 2.43 percent of the total pivot counties.

Pivot Counties (2020)

In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Washington had four Retained Pivot Counties and one Boomerang Pivot County, accounting for 2.21 and 4.00 percent of all Retained and Boomerang Pivot Counties, respectively.

More Washington coverage on Ballotpedia

• Elections in Washington
• United States congressional delegations from Washington
• Public policy in Washington
• Endorsers in Washington
• Washington fact checks
• More...

See also

• 2019 ballot measures
• November 5, 2019 ballot measures in Washington
• List of Washington ballot measures
• Laws governing the initiative process in Washington
• History of Initiative & Referendum in Washington

External links

• Washington Secretary of State - Initiatives & Referenda

Footnotes