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Labor activists Wednesday cheered the overwhelming defeat in Santa Monica of a ballot measure designed to bar the City Council from increasing the local minimum wage.
But both sides say the ultimate battle is far from over, although Proposition KK failed.
Now, the fate of a proposed city-mandated living wage shifts to the newly reelected liberal majority on the City Council. And both sides are gearing up for the next round of a debate that analysts say has national implications. If Santa Monica requires the wage hikes for a beach-side district, the city could be a model for dozens of other municipalities grappling with similar issues.
"It's just begun," said Vivian Rothstein, one of the community activists who led the charge against Proposition KK. "But we've definitely won the first round."
More than 78% of the city's 59,000 voters cast ballots against Proposition KK, which would have set a minimum wage of $8.32 per hour for about 62 employees of city contractors. More significantly, the hotel-backed measure also would have prohibited the City Council from passing a broader wage hike to $10.69...