I-1033 foes fear voters will miss initiative on their ballots

Opponents of Tim Eyman's Initiative 1033 say they're worried King County voters will have trouble finding the measure on the ballot, which was mailed to voters last week.

The initiative was placed underneath a large diagram, on the left side of the mail-in ballot, that shows people how to vote.

Initiative 1033 would limit tax-revenue increases for state, city and county governments to the rate of inflation and population growth. Any money collected above the limit would be used to reduce property taxes.

"Our concern is that, because 1033 is tucked away underneath the instructions, people will miss it," said Scott Whiteaker, a spokesman for the No on 1033 campaign. "We want to make sure there's a solid turnout in King County."

However, Matt Barreto, a political-science professor and polling expert at the University of Washington, said it should not cause concern for either side of the issue.

"Anything that gets listed on page one always has the highest participation. Year after year, stuff that's on page one always gets more votes than stuff that's on page four," said Barreto, who looked at the King County ballot.

And even if people did miss the I-1033 question, opponents and supporters would likely miss it in equal numbers so it would not affect the outcome of the election statewide, Barreto said.

"The only people who won't be able to find it are people who are just really confused and can't follow directions," he said. "Why would that correlate with yes or no votes?"

All of that aside, King County is important to the No campaign.

"If the No side is going to prevail they're going to have to prevail in King County," said Seattle pollster Stuart Elway. "Seattle has the most liberal constituency in the state and has a history of not only voting against these [anti-tax] initiatives, but voting for tax increases."

Turnout in Seattle and King County, which have a hotly contested mayor's race and county-executive race, is expected to beat the statewide average this election. The county projects a 56 percent turnout, while the secretary of state predicts 51 percent statewide.

Eyman called the flap over King County's ballot "much ado about nothing. Plenty of people will see it. Everybody will have a chance to vote on it. I'm certainly hopeful that our supporters see it and our opponents don't."

Megan Coppersmith, a spokeswoman for King County Elections, said the agency doesn't see a problem with the placement of I-1033 on the ballot.

"Our message to voters is just encouraging them to read thoroughly both sides of their ballot, including the instructions."

Andrew Garber: 360-236-8266 or agarber@seattletimes.com