California voters sitting down with their official state voter guides ahead of the November election are being greeted not with neutral explanations of the ballot measures before them, but with nakedly political attacks — including a swipe at "MAGA billionaires" — buried inside the official argument against Proposition 39, the citizen-led voter ID initiative.
According to Fox News Politics, the opposition argument printed in the state's voter guide opens with a blunt directive: "No on Prop."
The measure itself is straightforward. Prop 39 would require a government-issued identification card or number to vote in person or by mail, and would require election officials to verify U.S. citizenship. Californians for Voter ID submitted 1.3 million signatures in March to qualify the initiative — far beyond the roughly 875,000 needed. The state's voters will decide its fate in November.
Who's Behind the Fight
The official arguments for and against ballot measures are written by the campaigns themselves, with supporters and opponents each getting space. The opposition argument is backed by the ACLU California Action, Common Cause and the League of Women Voters of California, per the voter guide language reported by Fox News Politics. The guide warns of "[c]osts of between tens of millions of dollars and low hundreds of millions of dollars each year to implement new voting requirements."
Supporters include the Transparency Foundation, the Latino American Political Assn and the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association — a coalition the yes side describes in its own guide argument as proof of bipartisan backing: "Yes on Prop. 39 gives California a BIPARTISAN solution for VOTER ID," it reads. "Supported by a solid majority of Democratic, Independent and Republican voters. Increases trust and confidence in our elections."
The money behind the campaign has drawn heavy coverage in the state's press. The Los Angeles Times reported that Illinois packing-supply billionaire Richard Uihlein has contributed $17 million to the Prop 39 campaign, joined by Southern California businessman Steven Bray, who loaned the campaign more than $3 million, plus the Winklevoss twins and former RFK Jr. running mate Nicole Shanahan. The Times put total campaign fundraising above $28 million — $11 million more than opponents as of a month before Election Day. Assemblymember Carl DeMaio, a San Diego Republican, created Reform California and is spearheading the initiative, according to the Times.
The pro-39 campaign pushes back on the idea that out-of-state money is disqualifying, and supporters argue voter ID is no different from showing identification to board a plane or buy alcohol. The National Conference of State Legislatures counts 36 states that request or require some form of voter identification at the polls, a point proponents have stressed. California currently requires a driver's license and Social Security number to register, but nothing at the moment of casting a ballot.
Online reaction to the guide's language came fast, with critics calling out a state document using terminology associated with partisan messaging. "It is so dark that this is the level of discourse in the OFFICIAL California" voter guide, one critic wrote online, according to Fox News Politics.
The stakes extend beyond Sacramento. The Times reported that conservatives view Prop 39 as a test of support for voter restrictions in future battleground states, tying the California fight to the broader national push by President Trump to tighten election rules. Whether the guide's rhetoric helps or hurts the opposition remains an open question — no public polling on Prop 39 was cited in the coverage reviewed, and it is not yet known how the language will factor into undecided voters' decisions.
For Californians, the practical effect of a yes vote is simple: additional identifying information would be required each time they vote, per the guide's own summary. A no vote means a voter's identity continues to be established by signature alone. Both sides have until November to make their case — one of them with a state-printed assist that takes direct aim at the former president's supporters.
Our Take
There is a word for a government document that uses official space to smear voters as "MAGA billionaires": propaganda. The California voter guide is paid for by taxpayers, mailed to every household in the state, and it is supposed to explain ballot measures, not launder the ACLU's talking points through the Secretary of State's office. Opponents of voter ID are welcome to their argument — they just have to win it on the merits, which is precisely why they've chosen this instead.
Think about what the opposition argument actually concedes. It doesn't claim voter ID is unpopular, because it isn't — overwhelming majorities of Americans across party lines support showing ID to vote. It doesn't dispute that 36 states already require or request identification. It doesn't even dispute that citizenship verification is a reasonable expectation for a country that asks for a passport to re-enter from a weekend in Cancún. Instead, it reaches for the scare words: "voter suppression," "Trump's agenda," "MAGA." That's not an argument. That's a tell.
And the deep blue state of California is where this fight is being staged for a reason. If voter ID can pass in a state where Democrats hold every statewide office, the Left loses its favorite excuse forever. That's why the money is pouring in on both sides, and that's why the language in this guide is so desperate.
One question for Golden State patriots: when you open your official voter guide this month and see your own neighbors branded as Trump's billionaires, written by the same people who claim to protect your rights — do you trust them with your ballot? Vote yes on Prop 39, and make the answer heard in November.
