A new tax to fund San Diego Unified schools fell far short of the two-thirds it needed to pass. But proponents can now point to the fact that it got more than half of the vote: As of last night, Prop. J had 50.38 percent of the vote, with about 45,000 votes still to be counted countywide. It had fallen just short of a majority on election night and has gained votes as provisional ballots are tallied.
Winning at least half of the vote was important to school board members and campaign backers who want to push for California to lower the voting threshold to pass a parcel tax — a point that would be a lot harder to make if the San Diego schools tax hadn’t drummed up a majority vote.
Please contact Emily Alpert directly at emily.alpert@voiceofsandiego.org or 619.550.5665 and follow her on Twitter: twitter.com/emilyschoolsyou.