A “Calexit” initiative to allow California to secede from the United States has been cleared to legally gather signatures.
If passed, the proposed measure — “Calexit,” a nod to the Brexit vote in the UK — would be on the ballot in 2028 and ask voters: “Should California leave the United States and become a free and independent country?”
For the measure to pass, at least 50% of registered voters must participate in the election, and at least 55% — or more than 500,000 people, must vote “yes” by July 22.
Should that happen, it would trigger “a vote of no confidence in the United States of America” and “expression of the will of the people of California” to become an independent country.
Then a 20-member commission would be created to study the viability of California operating as an independent state in 2027 and to publish a report the following year.
Then the question would appear on the ballot in 2028.
And if that’s approved, the proposal would declare a “vote of no confidence in the United States of America” — without changing the state’s government or its relationship with the U.S.
The measure also calls for the U.S. flag to be removed from all state buildings.
The secession plan was introduced by Marcus Evans, a Fresno-based political activist, according to the California Secretary of State. Evans unsuccessfully pushed the state to secede in President Trump’s first term in office.
“We believe that now is the best time to Calexit – NOW we are better situated to make Calexit happen than in 2016,” he told CBS News.
The scheme will cost the state at least $10 million, and $2 million a year to operate the commission, according to CBS.
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