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11/7/01
Tax
Issue Dominates November Elections
All four candidates for governor in New Jersey and Virginia oppose
new taxes; Taxpayers win landslide victory in Washington State ballot
measure; Pro-Taxpayer mayoral candidates triumph in NYC and Houston.
WASHINGTON - Taxpayers
in Washington State are jumping up and down, while voters in New Jersey,
Virginia, Houston and New York City breathed a temporary sigh of relief
this morning. Why? Because the crusade against tax increases and big
government has become a centerpiece of both major political parties.
Voters in Washington
State overwhelmingly supported a "cut and cap" property
tax relief measure, despite strong opposition from the spending lobbies
in Olympia. Initiative 747, which requires a referendum to raise state
property taxes by 1% or more, won in every county except King County,
and passed statewide by an impressive 59-40% margin.
In Virginia, voters
chose Democrat candidate Mark Warner to be their next governor, over
Republican Attorney General Mark Earley, in an election decided by
a 52-47% margin. Warner promised on September 26th of this year that
he would not raise taxes if elected. As reported in The Washington
Post on the 27th of September, Warner said, "I will not raise
taxes." Warner ran as a self-proclaimed "fiscal conservative,"
and made a similar "no new taxes" promise in multiple television
ads aired by his campaign.
In New Jersey,
both the Republican and Democratic gubernatorial candidates reassured
Garden State taxpayers that their already high tax burden would not
grow. Republican Bret Schundler signed the Taxpayer Protection Pledge
to not raise taxes, while Democrat McGreevey made his position clear
during the last televised debate, when he said: "I am committed
to not raising taxes." McGreevey won the election by a 56-42%
margin.
In mayoral races,
New York City's Michael Bloomberg told Big Apple voters that he wouldn't
raise taxes (Washington Post, November 7th), while Orlando Sanchez
of Houston forced a runoff against the city's tax-and-spend mayor.
Sanchez signed the Taxpayer Protection Pledge in August, committing
himself to "oppose and veto" any new tax increases in Houston.
Taxpayer advocate
Grover Norquist, who heads Americans for Tax Reform, said "Election
night 2001 was an encouraging sign for taxpayers everywhere. Candidates
from both parties, and in every major race, understood that raising
taxes is the true third-rail of American politics. America's prosperity
is founded upon low taxes and limited government. And for the first
time, politicians everywhere see that as an indisputable truth."
