Voters Resoundingly Defeat Proposition 20's Attempt to Roll Back Prison Reform

Updated 3:45 p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 4

California voters overwhelmingly rejected Proposition 20, a ballot measure that would have rolled back key portions of recent criminal justice reforms. The measure had more than 62% votes against it as of Wednesday at 3:35 p.m.

The results illustrate how dramatically public opinion has shifted over the past two decades and indicate that voters do not feel California has gone too far in its efforts to reduce prison and jail populations and redirect money into rehabilitation programs.

Criminal justice reform advocates hailed the defeat of what they called “the prison spending scam.”

“[Voters] support the reforms that we’ve made, and they actually want us to keep moving toward rehabilitation … instead of just mindlessly locking up more and more people for nonviolent crime,” said Dan Newman, a consultant for the No on Prop. 20 campaign.

Proposition 20, backed by police and prosecutors, was aimed at making it easier to put some people in jail for theft, while making it harder for thousands of state prisoners to qualify for parole consideration. It also would have expanded DNA collection of people convicted of some misdemeanors.

Supporters argued that the measure would selectively roll back what they characterized as some of the more harmful reforms enacted in recent years, making it easier for communities to crack down on serial theft and ensuring that dangerous criminals aren’t eligible for early parole.

Opponents, including state Democratic leaders, said it would send more people to jail and prison just as California is starting to get a handle on its overcrowded lockups, and that it would redirect millions of dollars from rehabilitation programs, victims services and other community programs back to incarceration.

Law enforcement groups generally supported Proposition 20.

Separately, voters also rejected Proposition 25, an effort to end cash bail in California. The measure was a referendum on Senate Bill 10, a law passed by the California Legislature and signed by former Gov. Jerry Brown two years ago. The law eliminated cash bail as an option for securing release from jail after an arrest, replacing it with a system that relies on risk assessments to advise judges, who would make the final call.

Because Proposition 25 was rejected, the current cash bail system will remain in place.