Free Republic

Separate ballot measures in California and Ohio to remove lawmakers from the drawing of legislative districts have been dogged by accusations that they are essentially partisan power grabs. Now Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, a Republican, hopes to counter those claims by throwing his weight behind the Ohio measure, even though no prominent Republican elected official in that state has done so and many Republican lawmakers there are raising money to defeat it. ... A top supporter of the measures in both states said Mr. Schwarzenegger would participate in a series of public events this week to signal his stance. (snip) In...

SACRAMENTO (AP) - A key supporter of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's redistricting measure announced plans Tuesday to form an independent, nonpartisan campaign supporting Proposition 77 - largely over fears the measure will fail if tied directly to Schwarzenegger's other Republican-backed ballot initiatives. Bill Mundell, a Southern California businessman who donated more than $300,000 to help qualify the redistricting measure for the ballot, said his new group would operate separately from the governor's California Recovery Team in support of the initiative. The move comes on the same day the California Recovery Team announced that Steve Poizner, a Silicon Valley billionaire and Republican...