Voters willing to spend

Even as an economic crisis has forced hundreds of thousands out of their homes and state officials are staring at a $15 billion budget deficit, California voters stunned analysts by approving $11 billion in bonds to build a high-speed rail system and fix up children's hospitals.

And voters in Los Angeles County have come out largely in support of tacking another half-percent onto their sales taxes to fund transportation projects, while at the same time giving the OK to $7 billion in bonds for the Los Angeles Unified School District and $3.5 billion for L.A. community colleges.Brandon Lowrey in the Daily News.

As the dust began to settle Wednesday, some experts are blaming the surprise on everything from President-elect Barack Obama's political machine to voter ignorance to idealism.

"I think the Obama turnout really made a difference," said Bob Stern, president of the Center for Governmental Studies in Los Angeles. "It just brought out a lot of new voters, a lot of young voters who probably don't have the same feelings about property tax that old voters might have."