Ballot Box Surprises Alongside Blue Wave: Voter ID Passes in Three States, California Rejects Billionaire Tax

While Democrats' midterm sweep dominated Election Night, voters in several US states delivered consequential and sometimes crosscutting verdicts on ballot measures covering voter ID, abortion access, taxes and English-language laws. Those down-ballot decisions largely unfolded beneath the shadow of the Republican Party's heavy losses and will shape the lives of thousands of Americans.

Voters in Nevada, North Carolina and Ohio all voted to pass voter ID requirements, even as talks among federal lawmakers have stalled on the issue. In North Carolina, photo ID has been required for in-person voting since 2018; with a constitutional amendment adopted by 59.6 percent to 40.3 percent, the state expanded the requirement to all forms of voting.

In Ohio, voters passed Issue 3 by 65.3 percent to 34.6 percent. Ohio already had in-person voter ID laws, but Issue 3 codified the requirement in the state's constitution, making it harder to overturn later. In Nevada, Question 7 passed by 62.1 percent to 37.8 percent, establishing a constitutional amendment to enact the state's first voter ID requirement. It compels voters to show ID when voting in person and, for mail and absentee ballots, asks voters to provide the last four digits of their driver's license or Social Security number.

California voters, by contrast, rejected Proposition 39, a proposed constitutional amendment that would have required ID for in-person voting and checks of the state's voter registration lists, by 39.4 percent to 60.5 percent. Like Nevada's Question 7, it would also have asked absentee voters to provide the last four digits of a unique government-issued ID number. Ahead of Election Day, Governor Gavin Newsom characterized Proposition 39 as an extension of efforts to restrict access to voting rights.

In Idaho, voters approved HJR6 by 63.1 percent to 36.8 percent, a measure that makes English the official language of the state through a constitutional amendment for use in public proceedings. English had already been Idaho's official language through statute since 2007. State Representative Dale Hawkins, one of the champions behind HJR6, called it reflective of efforts by the Trump administration to make English the official language of the United States through executive order. He told the Idaho Capital Sun that language is one of the things that unites everyone as a culture, a country and a state, and said that in his view many newcomers had overlooked the country's linguistic identity.

Voters in Idaho also rejected Proposition 1, by 44.0 percent to 55.9 percent, which would have created a right to abortion up to the point of fetal viability, except in cases of medical emergency, and would have provided protections against professional discipline and civil and criminal liability for healthcare providers. Had it succeeded, the measure would greatly have reduced the state's current limits on abortion, which allow it only to save the life of a pregnant woman or in cases of rape or incest. Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, said in a statement that the outcome demonstrates that protecting life in the womb remains a priority, calling it a hard-fought win.

In California, voters also rejected Proposition 40, a 5 percent billionaire tax backed by the Democratic Socialists of America, by 47.5 percent to 52.4 percent. The proposition would have applied a 5 percent tax on assets such as businesses, securities, art, collectibles and intellectual property, while excluding select pensions, real estate and retirement accounts. To prevent billionaires from simply leaving the state, it was designed to apply retroactively to billionaires who were residents of California on 1 January 2026. The DSA framed the measure as a way to distribute wealth. Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom opposed Proposition 40, arguing that it would lessen California's competitiveness relative to other states.

Taken together, the state-level ballot verdicts show that public interest in voter ID remains strong, while voters' positions on abortion and a billionaire tax differ sharply from state to state.