Assembly's Democrats Could Lose Supermajority - For a while

Assemblyman Robert Blumenfield was recently elected to the Los Angeles City Council, which may prove to complicate things for his fellow democrats in the Assembly. Blumenfield, along with several other members of the Assembly (in both parties) are set to resign, which will end up shuffling around several Democratic members of the Assembly.

If two members move to the Senate in Tuesday’s special election, Democratic numbers will dip below the threshold for a “supermajority.” This could temporarily create problems for measures and taxes that require a 2/3rds vote, though experts such as Allan Hoffenblum, a former GOP strategist, believe that the supermajority will return by the Fall. State Democrat strategists agree, the supermajority will return soon.

Due to the multiple vacancies left in the Assembly after the recent elections and resignations, special elections in Democratic districts may restore the supermajority even sooner than some anticipate. 

The loss of a Supermajority may or may not end up being a large issue, given that the budget no longer requires 2/3rds majority on the Assembly. Additionally, Jerry Brown has pledged to not support any new tax measures. 

As it stands, most agree the loss of supermajority will only be a temporary problem, but it remains to be seen how much this will affect the Assembly in the meantime.

Read more on the issue here.