On November 3, 1998 the voters of Washington passed Initiative 200, a ballot measure that bans race and gender discrimination by state and local governments. The measure garnered 58% of the nearly 1.9 million votes cast on election day. It passed in all 39 counties except King, and in every part of that county except the city of Seattle.

Initiative 200 marked the first time in state history that a major civil rights law was enacted by direct popular vote. Three decades before passage of Initiative 200, the implementation of civil rights laws fell to elected officials, bureaucrats and universities. While initially striving for equal opportunity regardless of color, state affirmative action programs gradually created an in-grained preference system based on race and gender.

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