Good thing the people of California keep electing tax and spend Democrats.

I’m sure the massive public employee union pensions and benefits have absolutely nothing to do with these tuition increases.

BERKELEY — UC Berkeley faces a cut of $50 million to its $2.2 billion budget if Gov. Jerry Brown’s ballot measure to increase taxes fails in November.

That scenario would be a “very dark day” for students, Chancellor Robert Birgeneau said at a back-to-school news conference Thursday.

Birgeneau said students coming from middle- and upper-income families would be hurt the most. The failure of the tax measure would result in a tuition hike of 20 percent, UC Regents said earlier this summer. That would bump costs for undergraduate students to $14,670 a year.

That dark day would mean more debt, fewer classes and more time spent working jobs to pay for college, students said Thursday.

“I’ll be in debt until I’m 80,” said 21 year-old UC Berkeley senior Kayla Harris who plans to take another year to finish her studies. Harris said she already works two jobs and pays $600 a month for a studio apartment she shares with another person. She estimates she already owes $60,000 and an increase will move it up to about $70,000.

“There will be a lot more borrowing involved,” Harris said.

Sophomore Olivia Michterman, 19, said an increase in tuition would cause her to “take fewer classes, work more and take on more long-term debt which will make my life miserable,” if the UC system raises tuition.

UC Berkeley leaders said Thursday budget cuts can be absorbed somewhat by donations, operational savings and budget reserves.