California State Senate President pro Tem Don Perata (D-Oakland) is proposing an statewide advisory ballot measure on withdrawing from Iraq. From the entry at Calitics:
California would become the first state in the nation to call on President Bush to immediately withdraw all U.S. forces from Iraq under legislation unveiled today by Senate President pro Tem Don Perata (D-Oakland).
Frustrated by the Bush Administration's failure to end the war after more than four years, Perata announced plans to place an advisory measure on California's statewide ballot as part of next year's February 5th presidential primary.
My immediate reaction was to expect much of the debate to mirror that of the Iraq supplemental. A lot will be made of the non-binding aspect and how it's supposedly a waste of time and resources. Like that bill, I expect the outcome to be positive for the party in terms of our image, moving the debate and its framing, etc., etc. We could probably repost countless diaries from the recent congressional debate with a simple search and replace.
However, there is a further aspect I have yet to see commented on. This vote would take place on the Feb. 5 Presidential Primary ballot. This will have an effect on the California primary (in both parties I might add). I would expect it to drive up the vote of those candidates seen as in favor of a withdrawal (Edwards, for example). I may also help drive other candidates a bit further in our direction.
For a candidate hovering around 15%, going to 20 or 25% would make a huge difference in the number of delegates awarded, given the 15% (or higher in many CD's) minimum threshold.