November 3, 2026 general election
California Proposition 4; what a yes or no vote means.
Allows state and local governments to create public campaign-financing programs, with restrictions on the funds and candidates involved.
Bottom line
What Proposition 4 does
Allows state and local governments to create public campaign-financing programs, with restrictions on the funds and candidates involved.
The measure is a legislative statute placed on the ballot by legislature. Its official title is “Repeals Prohibition Against Public Funding of Election Campaigns.”
A yes vote
Yes means
State and local governments could create public campaign-financing programs under specified limits.
A no vote
No means
State and most local governments would remain unable to create those programs.
State estimate
What it could cost
Ongoing state costs of a few hundred thousand dollars each year for Fair Political Practices Commission guidance.
That is the fiscal effect summarized from the state voter guide. Estimates describe likely government effects; they are not a promise of an exact future result.
Primary record
Read the complete state analysis
This explainer is a starting point. The Secretary of State’s guide carries the impartial analysis, fiscal estimate, arguments for and against the measure, rebuttals and proposed law. Read that record before making a decision.
Open the official Proposition 4 guide