Report: Term Limits Initiative Fails To Gather Enough Signatures, Will Miss February Ballot

The Flash Report had a Drudge-like breaking news item up last night that the term limits initiative scheduled for the February ballot was going to miss the number of required signatures needed to qualify. We've been calling around, and apparently this is pretty accurate. It's totally unconfirmed, and the Secretary of State can go to a hand count to see if they reached the requisite number. But right now, it's not looking good; a LOT of the signatures have been invalidated.

I'm honestly astonished. I thought you could accidentally gather enough signatures to get something on the ballot in California. I'm not sure where the ball was dropped here.

They can try again to make this term limits shift for the June ballot. But if they can't qualify for February, many current incumbents whose length of service would stretch due to the provisions of the initiative would end up termed out. This includes Speaker Nuñez and President Pro Tem Perata. I'd like to get a full list of the implications of this, but that won't happen right now. (ortcutt?)

This will make it easier for challengers to decide to run, so we'll see the June primary process take shape quickly if this works out this way. Quite a turn of events.

(The other question is, what happens to all the money horded for this initiative? I know a certain dirty trick that needs fighting...)