SANTA MONICA, California — Measure D, which would have defended the Santa Monica Airport by forcing any land use change by the local city council to go to the voters first in a referendum, lost big on Tuesday, going down to defeat roughly 58% to 42%. A competing ballot question, Measure LC, won by a slightly larger margin, giving the council a freer hand in turning the airport into a park or another use–pending litigation or resistance from the federal government.
In the weeks before the election, Measure D supporters had claimed to have two-thirds support from Santa Monicans. However, Measure LC appeared to have won the turnout battle decisively, with a strong grassroots campaign overcoming a significant disadvantage in spending. The future of the airport now remains unclear. Airport opponents Kevin McKeown, Sue Himmelrich, and Pam O’Connor won in the local city council race.
Senior Editor-at-Large Joel B. Pollak edits Breitbart California and is the author of the new ebook, Wacko Birds: The Fall (and Rise) of the Tea Party, available for Amazon Kindle.
Follow Joel on Twitter: @joelpollak
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