Spokane Voters Reject School Expansion
Citizens of school district No. 81 strike down a $400,000 bond measure, falling short of the required three-fifths majority.
The proposition to issue $400,000 worth of school bonds for building purposes was defeated by the voters of school district No. 81, by a vote of 483 in favor to 571 against. The majority against the bonds, on the face of the returns, therefore, is 88, but when it is considered that a three-fifths vote was required to carry the bonds, the actual majority was 149. The total vote cast was 1054, and three-fifths of that number is 632. The vote was less than 50 per cent of the total registration, which was 2418. The bonding scheme carried in only two wards—the first and the fourth—and split even in Bisbee precinct, which is outside the city limits, but included in the school district.
“The bonding scheme carried in only two wards—the first and the fourth—and split even in Bisbee precinct.”
The tension between necessary public investment and voter tax resistance is a permanent fixture of Washington civic life. This 1903 school bond failure reflects the same 'three-fifths' supermajority hurdles that still complicate municipal infrastructure funding today.
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