By Tali Woodward

If Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger decides to call a special election, the one question voters will certainly be asked is if young women should be required to notify their parents before having an abortion. Another measure likely to make the ballot would severely restrict the political muscle of labor unions by requiring members of public employees' unions to give written consent before their dues money is used on a campaign.

Schwarzenegger has been saying for months that he will call a special election this coming November if he's unable to convince the legislature to get behind three of his main policy proposals: to take the power of drawing legislative districts away from the Democrat-controlled legislature, to make it harder for public school teachers to get tenure, and to make it easier to slash state spending.

Now that two potentially volatile issues are likely to be on the ballot alongside whichever Schwarzenegger proposals qualify, political strategists are trying to assess the possible effects on the election's outcome. Is the abortion initiative going to energize conservatives, who are more likely to support the governor's reforms, or will it have the unintended consequence of bringing left-wing voters to the polls? How hard will unions work to fight the other measure, and what will that mean?

It's worth noting that both issues have rough histories in California.

In the late 1990s, the California Supreme Court struck down a state law requiring minors to get formal parental permission before having an abortion, ruling that it was a violation of privacy rights. Still, a 2002 Field Poll of California voters showed strong support for parental consent. The new abortion proposition was placed on the ballot through the efforts of three large donors – oddly including the publisher of a fellow alternative newsweekly, the San Diego Reader. It would require that parents of any teenager under 17 who is seeking an abortion be notified in writing; the teen would then have to wait 48 hours before having an abortion. The measure would allow estranged teens to get an exemption from juvenile court and would track how many abortions young women have.

The union measure – called "paycheck protection" by supporters – is a reworking of a 1998 initiative that would have applied to all unions but was defeated at the polls. This time backers have decided to target only the unions that represent city and state workers and to require them to get annual approval from each member before using that member's dues money for political causes. Opponents say it is intended to prevent unions from challenging large corporations and their typically Republican supporters.

Schwarzenegger has until mid-June to decide about the special election. Some of California's biggest unions, including those that represent nurses, teachers, and firefighters, are using these final days to point out all the things that could be funded instead of poll workers and ballot handbooks. They say the $80 million the election is anticipated to cost would be better spent providing health insurance for roughly 30,000 Californians, buying four million new textbooks for our schools, or paying the salaries of 2,300 teachers. Of course, that doesn't even take into account the $40 million that has already been donated to campaign committees.

If there isn't a special election, measures that have qualified will be placed on the June 2006 ballot.

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