Citation:

Abstract:

We examine an important case study of the controversial use of the initiative process in California: the colorful “Ham and Eggs” movement of 1938, a misguided attempt to provide elderly Californians with a weekly pension. Our analysis focuses on a collection of postcard survey responses recently discovered at the Huntington Library in Pasadena, California. This survey, conducted in 1938 by the Research Institute, posed questions about a series of pressing issues, including the various Ham and Eggs initiatives. We provide a qualitative study of the open-ended responses provided by survey participants along with a quantitative analysis of the fixed-choice questions. As best as we are aware, this is the only survey data on California politics of this period. Thus our analysis, while necessarily limited, sheds additional light on this important period of California politics.