SAN FRANCISCO — Not quite everything goes in San Francisco.

Voters in this liberal bastion on Tuesday turned down a measure that would have barred police from arresting prostitutes.

San Francisco couldn't technically legalize prostitution since it's against state law, but the proposal would have barred local authorities from investigating, arresting or prosecuting anyone for selling sex.

Advocates say the measure would have freed millions that the police spend each year arresting prostitutes and would allow sex workers to form collectives to defend their rights and safety.

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BOSTON (AP) _ Massachusetts voters approved a measure Tuesday to eliminate criminal penalties for people caught with an ounce or less of marijuana.

The law, which takes effect in 30 days, will force those caught with pot to forfeit the drug and pay a $100 fine.

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Supporters said it is hard for those caught with small amounts of the drug to get a job, student loan or gain access to public housing.

Critics, led by the state's 11 district attorneys, warned the measure could lead to more drug abuse among young people.

Under the new law, anyone under 18 also has to complete a drug awareness course or may face a stiffer, $1,000 fine.

Michigan voters also approved a measure allowing severely ill patients to register with the state and legally buy, grow and use small amounts of marijuana to relieve pain.

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LOS ANGELES (AP) _ California voters on Tuesday approved a proposition outlawing cramped cages for egg-laying chickens, the broadest measure on farm animal treatment ever put before voters in any state.

The Standards for Confining Farm Animals Act drew some high-profile backers, including Ellen DeGeneres and her wife, Portia de Rossi. Opponents argue the measure will drive egg producers out of state.

The measure prohibits ranchers from keeping chickens, veal calves and breeding pigs in pens that are too small for them to stand up, turn around or stretch.

The restrictions will take effect in 2015. Violations will carry a $1,000 fine.

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LOS ANGELES (AP) _ California voters defeated what would have been the country's most aggressive clean power initiative.

The measure would have required state utilities to generate half their electricity from windmills, solar systems, geothermal reserves and other renewable sources by 2025.

Critics charged the initiative would have driven up electricity rates, delayed the transition to clean power and put small renewable energy companies out of business.

Supporters argued utilities had to be forced to boost their purchases of renewable energy.

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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ San Francisco voters flushed the idea of renaming a local sewage plant after President Bush.

The proposal was a lighthearted attempt to memorialize the outgoing president at the Oceanside Water Pollution Control Plant.

The measure's supporters said calling it the George W. Bush Sewage Plant would have been a fitting tribute. They blamed Bush for a long list of national woes from the Iraq war to the slumping economy.

Some critics argued the name switch would have been unfair to the sewage plant.

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SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) _ Former NBA star Kevin Johnson won the race for mayor of California's capital on Tuesday over incumbent Heather Fargo.

The former Phoenix Suns point guard nearly clinched the election in the June primary but was forced into a runoff. Both are Democrats in the nonpartisan race.

Johnson flexed his celebrity muscle, out-fundraised Fargo and touted campaign contributions from billionaire investor Warren Buffett.

Johnson, 42, sharpened his attack on Fargo's failure to set aside cash for tough times. He proposed spending more discretionary money on police and fire protection.

Fargo, 55, said Johnson's conservative social views were out of touch with Sacramento voters.

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MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) _ A sex offender who campaigned for a seat in the state Legislature lost big Tuesday.

Larkin Forney, 31, who pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a minor and has three convictions for driving under the influence, was one of 14 candidates for six seats representing Vermont's largest county in the state Senate.

His campaign ended with him around the bottom of the list.

He said he ran to bring attention to what he says was his wrongful conviction and to expose problems in the criminal justice system.

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SAN DIEGO (AP) _ Voters decided Tuesday to prohibit alcohol consumption on city beaches, making permanent a temporary ban that was imposed after a large brawl last year.

The City Council passed that ban following the drunken brawl over Labor Day weekend in the often-ribald Pacific Beach neighborhood. About 70 police officers, some in riot gear, were needed to break up the melee.

The temporary ban was scheduled to expire Jan. 14.

Supporters said they wanted to make beaches safer for families and tourists. Opponents said the blanket ban goes too far and would hurt businesses.

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MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) _ State Auditor Thomas Salmon _ who's serving with the U.S. Naval Reserve in Iraq _ won re-election Tuesday despite not being allowed to campaign.

Salmon, a 45-year-old certified professional accountant, was deployed in June. Under Pentagon rules, he wasn't allowed to participate in his re-election campaign. So his wife, campaign manager and father _ former Gov. Thomas Salmon _ ran the campaign without him.

Salmon, a Democrat, was well ahead of Progressive Party candidate Martha Abbott and Liberty Union candidate Jerry Levy.

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DETROIT (AP) _ A man waiting in line to vote at a Detroit elementary school Tuesday was wounded by a stray bullet that struck him in the shoulder.

The shot came from a nearby field and was not believed to be related to the election, police spokesman James Tate said. The man's wounds were not life-threatening, he said.

The shooting took place around 6:30 p.m. at a school on the city's east side. The 22-year-old man's family and others in line continued through and voted.

No one was immediately arrested.

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ATLANTA (AP) _ Libertarian presidential candidate Bob Barr's campaign aimed to sway disillusioned Republicans and target swing states, but election returns showed the ex-GOP congressman struggled to crack 1 percent in most states.

For Barr, whose presidential bid was as much about sending a signal to his former party as earning voters for his new one, it was a disappointing night. But the 59-year-old brimmed with optimism as he addressed a group of about 100 supporters late Tuesday.

"The party has a tremendous future being the future voice of politics in America," he said at a campaign party in Cobb County, a suburb of northwest Atlanta that he represented in Congress for four terms.

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MILWAUKEE (AP) _ Voters on Tuesday overwhelmingly approved requiring private employers to pay for sick days for all workers in Wisconsin's largest city.

San Francisco and Washington, D.C., have previously passed similar measures. Mayor Tom Barrett and the Milwaukee Metropolitan Association of Commerce opposed the measure, saying it would cost the city jobs and set a bad precedent.

The referendum, sought by a coalition of union and community groups, gives full-time workers five to nine sick days a year, depending on the size of their employer.

Opponents say the ordinance's language is too broad and subject to legal challenges.

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NEW YORK (AP) _ Democrat Michael McMahon won the congressional seat in Staten Island held by disgraced Rep. Vito Fossella, tipping the entire New York City congressional delegation to Democrats for the first time in 35 years.

McMahon beat Republican Bob Straniere in a district that also includes part of Brooklyn.

Fossella, a Republican who was re-elected five times, decided not to run again after a drunken-driving arrest led to the revelation that he had fathered a child during an extramarital affair. Then, Frank Powers, the candidate selected by the GOP to run for Fossella's seat, died suddenly.

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CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) _ Wyoming voters overwhelmingly sent their two Republican senators back to Washington on Tuesday, the junior politician winning a special election a little more than a year after he was appointed.

John Barrasso beat Democrat Nick Carter in the special election to replace the late Sen. Craig Thomas. Barrasso was appointed by Wyoming Gov. Dave Freudenthal in June 2007 after Thomas died of complications from leukemia.

Meanwhile, Mike Enzi defeated Democrat Chris Rothfuss to win his third six-year term.

Barrasso touted his fiscal conservatism and proposals to help Wyoming ranchers. Enzi stressed his ability to get results despite the partisan atmosphere of Washington. He is the top Republican on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

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AKRON, Ohio (AP) _ Voters defeated a plan to lease the city's sewage system to a contractor for $200 million and use the money for college scholarships.

Mayor Don Plusquellic had campaigned for the plan, but plant workers and community groups feared job losses, higher sewage rates and the privatization of public assets.

Plusquellic said it would help students attend local schools and fight the loss of college graduates in a city where less than 19 percent of residents have degrees.

The plan included rate limits, service guarantees and a requirement that scholarship recipients live or work in the city or start repaying the money.

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CHICAGO (AP) _ Illinois state Rep. Aaron Schock won his bid Tuesday to become the youngest member of Congress.

Schock, a 27-year-old Republican, beat Democrat Colleen Callahan, a Peoria County businesswoman and veteran radio broadcaster.

Schock's win kept the seat in central Illinois in Republican hands. He will replace Ray LaHood of Peoria, who is retiring.

Schock becomes the youngest member of Congress and the first born during Ronald Reagan's presidency. The national GOP is eyeing him as a rising star and he was asked to speak for a few minutes at the Republican National Convention.

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PHOENIX (AP) _ A sheriff in Arizona's most populous county, who has made news for crime sweeps that target illegal immigrants, was re-elected Tuesday.

Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who embraces the "Toughest Sheriff in America" title, rolled to victory in his fifth general election.

The Republican was facing his strongest re-election challenge in years from Democrat Dan Saban, a former sheriff's deputy, Mesa police officer and Buckeye police chief.

Arpaio's tactics have resulted in scores of arrests after traffic stops and other minor infractions in Maricopa County, which encompasses Phoenix and its suburbs.

His office has turned any arrested illegal immigrants over to federal authorities for deportation.

The practice outrages some quarters but has support from residents upset about the government's accomplishments on illegal immigration.

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MINNEAPOLIS (AP) _ Minnesota voters have said yes to raising their taxes.

They approved a constitutional amendment Tuesday that will raise the sales tax by three-eighths of 1 percent to provide a new pool of funding for outdoors, environmental, arts and cultural programs.

The Clean Water, Wildlife, Cultural Heritage and Natural Areas Amendment required a "yes" from a majority of all voters to pass. Leaving that box on the ballot blank counted as a "no" note.

Unease about the nation's financial woes had threatened to erode support for the amendment, which will generate an estimated $300 million a year in today's dollars, or around $11 billion over the next 25 years. The tax increase takes effect July 1.

Supporters said the amendment was needed because the Legislature has failed to provide enough funding for projects that meet their concerns. They also said the programs are likely to be squeezed further in the future.

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COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) _ South Carolina voters decided Tuesday not to take a gamble in the stock market but cleaned up a long-ignored provision in the state constitution about the age of consent for sex.

The stock market issue took the form of two proposed amendments on the ballot: one to allow stock investments by the state to pay for future retirees' health care and other benefits, and the other to allow such stock investments by local governments.

Most other states allow the funds to be invested in stocks.

The defeat could mean officials will have to raise taxes or trim spending to make sure they abide by new rules requiring them to have enough money to pay for the benefits for all employees at one time _ even if the workers are years away from retirement. They had been paying benefits for retirees as the bills came in.

The consent amendment deletes an item in the 113-year-old constitution that set the age of consent for sex for unmarried women at 14. The provision has been ignored for decades: State law sets the age at 16 for both sexes.

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PHOENIX (AP) _ Arizona voters on Tuesday defeated a ballot question that would have made it more difficult to pass ballot questions.

The proposed constitutional amendment would have raised the voter-approval threshold needed to pass initiatives that raise taxes or require new spending.

Specifically, it would have required that such measures be approved by a majority of all registered voters, not just voters casting ballots.

Supporters say it was needed to restrain advocacy groups' demands for increased spending or taxes. Opponents contended it would make it virtually impossible to win approval of most initiatives.

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BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) _ Former heavyweight boxer "Baby Joe" Mesi went down for the count Tuesday in his first political contest.

The Democrat fell to Republican Michael Razenhofer in a western New York race for the state Senate.

Mesi had the backing of politically connected Buffalo Sabres owner B. Thomas Golisano.

The Buffalo News endorsed Razenhofer, saying Mesi was instantly likable but out of his league at this point in his political career.

Mesi's 36-0 record in the ring is one of the longest active undefeated professional heavyweight boxing records in the world. He is a three-time New York State Golden Gloves champion, and was an alternate on the 1996 U.S. Olympic Boxing Team.

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COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) _ For the first time since 1979, it appears South Carolina's state Senate will have no women.

All three women running for Senate were well behind in their races, underscoring South Carolina's last-in-the-nation status when it comes to the percentage of women in its Legislature since 2003.

Otherwise, Tuesday's results didn't change much in Columbia. More than half the races in the House and Senate had just one person on the ballot. In most cases, the only person running was the incumbent, and incumbents led in all but two contested races.

Republicans also still control both chambers.

The Legislature also will have its first black Republican since Reconstruction. Tim Scott had no opposition for his Charleston-area seat.

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BOSTON (AP) _ Massachusetts voters approved a ban on greyhound racing Tuesday, despite pleas by owners of the state's two racetracks that hundreds of jobs were at stake.

The measure will force the two greyhound tracks to close their doors by Jan. 1, 2010.

Supporters argued that the racing is inhumane and that the dogs are routinely injured during races, with broken legs, paralysis and even death from cardiac arrest.

The state's dog tracks say the greyhounds are well cared for. They also pointed to their efforts to ensure greyhounds are adopted once their racing days are over.

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COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) _ The Ohio state treasurer won the race for attorney general on Tuesday, retaining the powerful office for Democrats even after a high-profile scandal.

Richard Cordray, 49, defeated Republican Mike Crites, a former U.S. attorney who wooed voters with a tough-on-corruption message. Crites painted Cordray as a career politician in the mold of former Attorney General Marc Dann, who was forced to resign in May.

Dann was forced out of office by fellow Democrats, including Cordray, after top aides were implicated in a sexual harassment scandal and after he admitted to an affair with an employee. He had won election in 2006 as part of the party's near-sweep of statewide offices long held by Republicans.

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ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) _ A former mayor of Atlantic City got his job back Tuesday, winning at a time of unprecedented turmoil in America's second-largest gambling resort.

Lorenzo Langford, 53, is a former casino dealer and Atlantic City school board member who served as mayor from 2002 to 2005 before being defeated by Bob Levy.

Langford defeated Republican John McQueen, a former police dispatcher who ran on an alternative energy platform, and independent candidate Joseph Polillo, a city licensing inspector.

Langford won a one-year unexpired term; he would have to run in a Democratic primary in June to be nominated to seek a full four-year term in the Nov. 2009 general election.

Atlantic City is heading for its second straight year of declining casino revenues after they went up for 28 straight years.

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JACKSON, Miss. (AP) _ A Democratic congressman in Mississippi who has held his seat for only a few months defeated his Republican rival Tuesday for the second time.

Rep. Travis Childers beat Greg Davis in a race for a district in northern Mississippi.

Childers also defeated Davis in May in a special election for the seat vacated after Republican Roger Wicker moved to the Senate.

Childers is a former Prentiss County chancery clerk. Davis is the mayor of Southaven.

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JACKSON, Miss. (AP) _ Trent Lott's old Senate seat will stay in Republican hands.

Republican Roger Wicker, who held the seat on a temporary basis, defeated Democratic former Gov. Ronnie Musgrove on Tuesday in a special election.

Wicker spent 14 years as a congressman, and Republican Gov. Haley Barbour appointed him to the Senate after Lott abruptly retired in December to become a lobbyist.

Wicker and Musgrove are longtime friends who shared an apartment in Jackson in the early 1990s when they were both in the state Legislature.

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JACKSON, Miss. (AP) _ Mississippi voters on Tuesday ousted their sitting chief justice and two other judges, one of whom was once accused of bribery and tax evasion.

Attorney Jim Kitchens defeated Chief Justice Jim Smith, who had been on the court for 15 years, the past four as chief justice.

In southern Mississippi, Presiding Justice Oliver Diaz Jr. lost to Chancery Judge Randy "Bubba" Pierce of Leakesville.

Former lawmaker Diaz, 48, was acquitted in two federal trials _ one on bribery charges in 2005 and another in a tax-evasion case in 2006.

In northern Mississippi, Court of Appeals Judge David Chandler defeated Justice Chuck Easley.

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INDIANAPOLIS (AP) _ Voters in southern Indiana got to vote twice Tuesday for a candidate named Dennie Oxley. But there was nothing illegal about it.

At the top of the ticket was five-term Rep. Dennie Oxley, a Democrat who was tapped as his party's candidate for lieutenant governor.

A legislative race featured his father, also named Dennie Oxley, who stepped in to run for the House seat his son vacated when he was chosen to run alongside Jill Long Thompson.

Father fared better than son Tuesday night. The younger Oxley's aspirations for higher office this year ended with Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels' re-election to a second term.

His father won his state legislative race, according to unofficial results tallied by The Associated Press.

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RICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ State legislator Dwight Jones won a four-way race Tuesday to replace Mayor L. Douglas Wilder, a grandson of slaves who was the nation's first elected black governor.

Jones' leading rival, City Council President William J. Pantele, conceded the contest and pledged to support Jones.

Elected mayor in 2004 with about 80 percent of the vote, Wilder's approval plunged amid poor relations with the City Council and the school board.

Wilder became a historic figure with his election as Virginia's governor in 1989. He was an early and influential backer of Barack Obama's presidential bid.

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LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) _ Voters sometimes show up at the wrong polling place, but officials in Jefferson County said Tuesday that one person was thousands of miles off.

Nore Ghibaudy, a spokesman for the county clerk's office, said an Alaska resident tried to vote in Louisville and was confounded when officials wouldn't allow it.

"They just couldn't understand why they couldn't vote here on Election Day," Ghibaudy said.

There was no word on whether the unidentified would-be voter hoped to pick Republican John McCain and his running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.

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BALTIMORE (AP) _ Maryland residents voted to legalize slot machines Tuesday, approving a constitutional amendment that allows as many as 15,000 in five locations, with half the proceeds set aside for the state's public schools.

The sites are in three counties, the city of Baltimore and on state property in Rocky Gap State Park in western Maryland.

The vote comes after years of stalled legislation in the General Assembly on one of the most divisive issues in Maryland politics.

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SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) _ South Dakota voters on Tuesday said their 117-year-old constitutional provision allowing legislators just 5 cents a mile for one trip to and from the state capital is just fine, thank you.

While lawmakers are at their annual session, they are reimbursed at a more generous rate per mile. But a provision from 1891 says lawmakers must receive only 5 cents per mile for traveling to and from the capital on one trip for the session.

The measure would have allowed lawmakers to get the state rate for all legislative travel.

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CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) _ The nation's longest-serving agriculture commissioner has been re-elected to another four-year term in West Virginia.

Gus Douglass, 81, said he decided to seek an 11th four-year term because challenges still lie ahead for him. He was elected commissioner six times between 1964 and 1984 and has won four more terms since 1992.

He ran unsuccessfully for governor in 1988.

Douglass faced turkey farmer and cattle rancher Mike Teets this year.

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CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) _ One John McCain supporter in West Virginia didn't let the untimely birth of her seventh child keep her from voting.

When Daniel Charles Parker came into the world two weeks ahead of schedule at 3 a.m. Tuesday at an out-of-state hospital, 38-year-old Heidi Parker thought she'd lost her chance to help determine who would lead the country "in the right way."

It took back-and-forth phone calls involving her husband, Matthew, social workers and nurses at a hospital in Maryland and election officials in West Virginia.

Ultimately, the Jefferson County Commission voted to allow two clerks _ one Republican and one Democrat _ to hand-deliver a ballot to Parker in the maternity ward of Frederick Memorial Hospital. She cast her ballot Tuesday afternoon.