122. Matthew Wurstner Explains Ballot Initiatives, the History Behind Them, and How They're Weaponized

If you’ve ever voted before, you probably were really excited or
scared about a couple of candidates at the top of the ballot. We
talk all the time on this show about how a healthy democracy
requires some investment in the less splashy stuff lower on the
ballot too–like the county attorney or municipal board
director–but another element of the ballot that can cause
headaches for the average, not particularly nerdy voter is the
section with initiatives. Ballot initiatives are often written in
dense, complex syntax that make it difficult to decipher what
exactly you’re voting for. 


Even if you understand the basic argument, it’s not always clear
what their implications are or how voting either way will affect
you. So we thought it’d be worth taking a show to dissect to talk
about that annoying, boring section of the ballot that you’ll see
this November. Matthew Wurstner is back on the show, talking with
Tom Knoblauch about the concept of ballot initiatives, Nebraska’s
history with them, and what made the cut this year.