Measure Would Ban Affirmative Action

Opponents of affirmative action said they had gathered enough signatures to make this state the next battleground in the war over racial preferences. Supporters of Initiative 200, which would ban race and gender preferences in government hiring, contracting and university admissions, delivered petitions with more than 284,000 voter signatures to the state capitol in Olympia. If 180,000 signatures are certified, the state Legislature must vote the initiative, modeled after California’s Proposition 209, into law as written or put the issue before the state’s voters. Legislators can also approve an alternative and let voters choose between them.