California is potentially a step closer to becoming its own independent country.

A new ballot initiative by Marcus Evans of Fresno is asking voters whether the state should become an independent country was cleared by the California Secretary of State’s Office to move forward.

To qualify for the state’s 2028 ballot, more than 545,000 signatures from registered voters must be gathered by July 22.

If approved, the measure would not trigger immediate independence, but it would create a 20-member commission to study whether California could govern itself as a separate nation.

The secession would require a constitutional amendment which would need approval from two-thirds of the states.

The proposal would declare a “vote of no confidence in the United States of America” — without changing the state’s government or its relationship with the U.S.

Keep in mind that Section 1 of Article III of the current State Constitution states that California “is an inseparable part of the United States of America.”

The Independent California Institute released a new poll purporting that more than 60% of Californians agree that they “would be better off California if peacefully seceded from the U.S. at some point in the next 10 years.”

The measure also calls for the U.S. flag to be removed from all state buildings.