Measure Z, the sugary drink tax, which adds a tax of 2 cents per ounce on distributors of sugar-sweetened beverages in the city of Santa Cruz, has passed. Mike Rotkin, Lookout politics columnist, isn’t surprised, despite the $2 million the American Beverage Association spent against it. He writes that Santa Cruz is a community primed to fight.
Nov. 5 2024 ballot measures
Coverage of local and state measures on the ballot for Santa Cruz County voters in the 2024 general election.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
On the Campaign Trail: Turnout tops 81% in county’s final vote tally
With the final vote count certified on Dec. 3, Lookout’s On the Campaign Trail delivered Election 2024 results, reaction and analysis from across Santa Cruz County and beyond.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
In San Lorenzo Valley water races, Measure U fails, Layng and Largay head to board of directors
Alina Layng and Bryan Largay won two open seats on the San Lorenzo Valley Water District. Measure U, the controversial ballot initiative crafted in part by board of directors candidate Bruce Holloway that proposed capping increases to flat rates on water utility customer bills, failed.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Central, Scotts Valley fire district bond measures fail; fire district races conclude with narrow wins
Both Central Fire’s Measure R and Scotts Valley Fire District’s Measure S failed to reach the two-thirds of the vote required to pass. Zayante’s Measure T, a parcel tax, passed with 72%.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Measure X: Scotts Valley business tax passes with strong support
Measure X, Scotts Valley’s updated business tax, appears to have passed, having received 72.1% of the vote with most ballots counted. The measure was ahead 4,962 to 1,917 after Tuesday’s update on the vote count.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Measure Y: Capitola sales tax increase passes with over two-thirds support
Capitola’s sales tax increase, Measure Y, has passed with more than two-thirds support after the final batch of ballots were counted Tuesday.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Measure Q, climate resilience bond, passes with over 60% of vote
Measure Q, the Santa Cruz County Water and Wildfire Protection Initiative, has passed, with 60% of the vote.
Posted inEducation
School district ballot measures: Most districts secure victories, Live Oak falls short
The majority of Santa Cruz County school district bond and parcel tax measures secured victories after a 4 p.m. Tuesday voting update. Live Oak School District’s Measure N was the only bond measure to fail.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Watsonville residents pass Measure V, Measure W
Watsonville residents look to be passing Measures V and W after Tuesday’s updated vote count, with Measure V receiving 7,434 votes (57.9%) and Measure W receiving 7,485 votes (58.6%) in support. Each needs a majority vote to pass.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Passage of Measure Z, Santa Cruz’s soda tax, nears certainty but not yet definite after Friday’s count
Measure Z, the 2-cent sugary drink tax proposed in the city of Santa Cruz, now has an almost-certain path to victory after it widened its lead to 1,129 votes on Friday; however, more than 1,800 ballots remain to be counted in the districts that touch the city of Santa Cruz. The county clerk’s office expects “nearly all” the ballots to be tallied by Tuesday at 4 p.m.