Policy Research: Ballot Measures
About Ballot Measures & Direct Democracy
In the state of Oregon, ballot measures fall into one of three categories:
- initiative,
- referendum, or
- referral.
Initiative and referendum measures are brought forth to a vote if supporters gather enough qualifying signatures from Oregon voters to place the item on the ballot. In this sense, ballot measures in Oregon provide voters with unique opportunities to change the law. This is called direct democracy. Oregon is one of 24 states in the United States that operates with direct democracy.
Referral ballot measures are those that originate from the state legislature.
References:
Doerr, N. 2013. Direct Democracy. The Wiley-Blackwell Encyclopedia of Social and Political Movements.
Oregon State Bar. 2015. Democracy in Action.
Related Guides
Ballot Measure Resources
- Oregon Ballot Measure Archive ProjectThe Ballot Measure Archive Project (BMAP) Collection in the PSU Library's Special Collections & Archives contains materials relating to ballot initiative processes including correspondence, petitions, newspaper articles, research relating to the ballot's issue, campaign and public relations materials and more. The quantity and types of documentation vary greatly from ballot to ballot.
- Oregon Voters' Pamphlet ProjectDigitized versions of Oregon voters' pamphlets provided by the Oregon State Library.