So, you believe that since you've decided on your presidential candidate, you are ready for the November ballot. Sorry! There's much more work to be done. As of June 17th, 11 propositions have qualified for the November 4th general election and, if passed, most of them could change your life

So far, the ballot propositions hit several hot-button issues such as same-sex marriage, teen abortions, cruelty to animals, renewable energy, and drug offenders. Then there's a tough-on-crime measure, an extension of crime victims rights, and bonds to support high-speed trains, children's hospitals, and the purchase of high fuel economy/alternative fuel vehicles. The last to qualify at this point would remove the Legislature from redistricting the legislative districts.

This year, the partisanship generated by the presidential election is expected to influence the fate of the propositions. Since there's much to read in those 11 propositions and for voters who adhere to party doctrine, it probably would be easier to just vote with your party. Of course, if everyone voted according to his/her party's preferences, the Democrats would win hands down since they have a growing 11% advantage over Republicans, according to the last California Voter Registration report released by Secretary of State Debra Bowen. The wild card is the increasing number of "Declined to State" registered voters, commonly known as independents. They amount to almost 20 percent of all registered voters and can shift the partisan balance in any contest.

Back in October, when the Democratic nomination for president was still in question, Hillary Clinton's pollster claimed that if Clinton were the Democratic nominee, 24 percent of Republican women would vote for her. That same month, the Los Angeles Times / Bloomberg poll found that if John McCain were the Republican nominee, 20 percent of Republican women would vote for Barack Obama while 11 percent would cast their votes for Clinton. And this month's Gallup poll showed Democratic women favoring Hillary Clinton over Barack Obama 49 to 45 percent.  In fact, CNN reported that 17 percent of Clinton's supporters (read women) would support McCain if she weren't chosen as the Democratic vice-presidential nominee and another 22 percent wouldn't vote in November.

What's the significance of all these numbers? To me and, I would presume, to the strategists for both Obama and McCain, it's time for a big push to gather up all that X chromosome support. Here are some suggestions for Senator McCain:

• "Older" women remember too well what it was like in the '70s to be passed over in the workplace, despite experience, knowledge, and preparation. Remind that group repeatedly that you have decades of experience in life as well as in government, that you are well-prepared to be president, and don't deserve to be passed over this time.
• Clinton, the fighter, won increasing support from women. You may have to reach way back into your memory bank for that fighting spirit. But the results could be worth the effort.
• Pro-life Democrats have been looking for a landing place since the abortion issue grabbed the national spotlight some 35 years ago when they no longer agreed with their party's pro-choice platform. Your pro-life stance fits theirs and could convince them to cross party lines.

And for Obama, I have the following recommendations:

• Women enjoy their hard-won power in the workplace and at home. So play up your female-centered family and the influences of your mother, grandmother, wife, and mother-in-law on your life, as suggested by your campaign spokes-woman (sic) Linda Douglass.
• You need to counter the growing hate emails claiming you are a radical Muslim, particularly for women want clarity on this issue. In San Diego this month, your half-sister Maya Soetoro-Ng, PhD, will talk about you at a fund-raiser. Might be a good idea to have her and other surrogates address the religion question head-on for broader audiences and get some media coverage for those events.
• Point out loudly and often your pro-choice credentials and your support from NARAL Pro-Choice America. Here is a clear enticement for women who cannot support a pro-life candidate to turn to you in November.

And do let me know how this all works out.

Every March 2nd since 1991 when Ted Geisel died, Audrey Geisel has held a birthday celebration for her husband. There’s always a birthday cake and a beguiling Seussian performance by graduate students from the drama department at UCSD. Often, the party is held at the university’s library that bears his name, and outside is a huge Cat in the Hat balloon. There’s no sadness at the birthday event, but joy as we birthday guests recall the pleasure the Dr. Seuss books continue to bring to the world. 

Audrey Geisel and I became friends about a year before Ted succumbed to cancer at 87. I’m delighted to be on the guest list for the annual event and attend most of them. This year, however, the seasonal upper respiratory infection hit my household and we were forced to miss the festivities. This was particularly disappointing because the brand new Seuss film, “Horton Hears a Who,” was being prepared to premiere the following weekend, and party conversation was sure to be peppered with speculation about its level of success with the audiences.

And successful the premiere was! At $45.1 million, Horton was the biggest opening of 2008 and now ranks as the fifth-biggest G-rated opening of all time. But all was not smooth at the Hollywood premiere where a group of anti-abortion demonstrators showed up to claim Horton as their ally in the abortion debate. Their argument is based on the famous Horton line: “a person is a person no matter how small.” 

For many, those words about a village of Whos, living on a speck on a clover leaf, are about the equality of beings despite stature and status. But the protestors see the phrase as a motto for their movement.

The natural question then centers on whether Ted Geisel made political statements through his children’s books and whether “a person is a person no matter how small” attests to his attitude toward abortion. His wife has opinions on both. And, to put the dispute in chronological context, “Horton Hears a Who” was written in 1954, long before Roe v. Wade and the ensuing debate on abortion.