On Election Day, there will be more to vote for than the candidates. There will be all kinds of important issues on ballots across the country.

One in particular is Proposition 209, a California initiative that would abolish all affirmative action programs, which mandate — under heavy controversy — equal opportunity for women and racial minorities in public education, public employment and government contracting.

If this initiative is passed, it will ban recruiting and hiring efforts to make police forces, public school administrators and other agencies more reflective of California’s ethnic and gender makeup.

It will eliminate minority scholarships administered through public schools.

Proposition 209 is deceptive and harsh.

Affirmative action has opened the door for women and ethnic minorities, groups that continue to face discrimination.

To abolish affirmative action would be to welcome discrimination. Affirmative action, after all, has helped some people receive opportunities they otherwise would not have.

Getting rid of something that works, that does what it set out to do, is senseless.

Affirmative action was never intended to last until infinity. It was supposed to do its job and be phased out. No one knew how long it would take. No one knew when it wouldn’t be needed anymore.

In our humble view, affirmative action hasn’t worked long enough to do without it.

Hopefully, there will be a time when affirmative action is no longer needed. But that time is not 1996.