Image by Wokandapix from Pixabay 

June 6, 2026 - Sacramento, Calif. – California Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber, Ph.D. announced that an initiative became eligible for the November 3, 2026, General Election ballot on June 5, 2026.  

In order to become eligible for the ballot, the initiative needed 546,651 valid petition signatures, which is equal to five percent of the total votes cast for governor in the November 2022 General Election.  

A measure can become eligible via random sampling of petition signatures if the sampling projects that the number of valid signatures is greater than 110 percent of the required number. The initiative needed at least 601,317 projected valid signatures to become eligible by random sampling, and it has exceeded that threshold today.  

On June 25, 2026, the Secretary of State will certify the initiative as qualified for the November 3, 2026, General Election ballot, unless it is withdrawn by the proponent prior to certification pursuant to Elections Code section 9604(b).  

The Attorney General's official title and summary of the measure is as follows:  

RESTRICTS POLITICAL SPENDING BY HEALTH CARE UNIONS. INITIATIVE STATUTE. Prohibits certain large health care unions from political spending over specified amounts regarding state or local ballot measures without following certain member consent requirements. Requires these unions to provide members annual notice describing prior-year political spending. Requirements apply only to unions, not employers. Imposes monetary penalties on unions as follows: (1) for violations of member consent requirements, the amount spent in violation of the requirements; and (2) for violations of member notice requirements, $1,000 per member (e.g., a $50,000,000 penalty if union does not provide notice to 50,000 members). Summary of estimate by Legislative Analyst and Director of Finance of fiscal impact on state and local governments: Increased annual state costs, potentially in the range of millions of dollars, with some costs paid for by penalties created by the measure. (25-0021A1.) 

The Secretary of State’s tracking number for this measure is 1998 and the Attorney General's tracking number is 25-0021A1. 

The proponent of the measure is Carmela Coyle. The proponent may be contacted c/o David Simon at dsimon@calhospital.org. 

For more information about how an initiative qualifies for the ballot in California, visit https://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/ballot-measures/how-qualify-initiative/. 

Source: CA. SoS