What were the most expensive ballot measures in California?
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Question: What were the most expensive ballot measures in California?
Answer: Based on available reports on Cal-Access, which provides information on campaign finance from 1999 to present, the most expensive ballot measures in California were Proposition 26 and Proposition 27—measures related to in-person and mobile sports betting on the ballot in 2022. The campaigns surrounding the measures reported $463.3 million.[1]
Before Propositions 26 and 27, campaigns surrounding Proposition 22, a 2020 measure related to app-based drivers and labor regulations, raised a combined total of $224.2 million.
The following table illustrates the top 11 most expensive ballot measures in California since 1999.
Note: Contributions for Proposition 50 (2025) were updated on October 2, 2025.
| Rank | Measure | Year | Total | Support | Opposition | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Propositions 26 and 27 | 2022 | $463,378,417 | $301,387,802[2] | $161,990,615 |  |
| 2 | Proposition 22 | 2020 | $224,253,017 | $205,369,249 | $18,883,768 |  |
| 3 | Proposition 33 | 2024 | $175,776,441 | $50,713,045 | $125,063,395 | |
| 4 | Propositions 94, 95, 96, and 97 | 2008 | $154,554,073 | $115,063,876 | $39,490,197 | |
| 5 | Proposition 87 | 2006 | $150,770,683 | $58,130,783 | $92,639,900 | |
| 6 | Proposition 15 | 2020 | $144,006,081 | $69,208,909 | $74,735,622 | |
| 7 | Proposition 50 | 2025 | $133,032,230 | $92,489,856 | $40,542,374 | TBD |
| 8 | Proposition 8 | 2018 | $130,426,208 | $18,943,228 | $111,482,980 | |
| 9 | Proposition 61 | 2016 | $128,276,770 | $19,170,610 | $109,106,160 | |
| 10 | Proposition 21 | 2020 | $124,424,014 | $40,852,357 | $83,571,657 | |
| 11 | Proposition 79 | 2005 | $121,826,243 | $40,516,352 | $81,309,891 | |
Details:
Ballotpedia calculated the campaign finance totals based on:
- contributions in unadjusted dollars (amounts have not been adjusted for inflation);
- the cash contributions and in-kind contributions to the PACs supporting or opposing a ballot measure;
- the PACs that registered to support or oppose a ballot measure (as available on Cal-Access);
- the period of time in which a PAC was registered to support or oppose a ballot measure (Note: Some PACs precede and succeed a ballot measure; therefore, Ballotpedia counted the PAC's received contributions for the period of time in which a PAC was registered for that measure);
- excluding committee-to-committee cash contributions as that would amount to counting the same funds twice.
Learn more:
See also
- Ballot measure campaign finance, 2024
- Ballot measure campaign finance, 2022
- Ballot measure campaign finance, 2020
- Ballot measure campaign finance, 2018
- List of California ballot measures
Footnotes
- ↑ Cal-Access, "Campaign Finance," accessed December 7, 2020
- ↑ One committee—Yes on 26, No on 27: Coalition for Safe, Responsible Gaming—was registered in support of Proposition 26 and opposition to Proposition 27. The contribution total does not disambiguate between support and opposition contributions, so it is included in the support total.
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