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The passage of SB5 in Ohio triggered a 90-day period where opponents could gather signatures to force a referendum, a “citizen veto” of the law, in November. The law does not take effect until the results of that referendum. Labor and progressive activists immediately went to work to try and overturn the law, which would severely limit collective bargaining rights in the state, eliminate the right to strike and even hit public safety positions like police and firefighters.
The anti-SB 5 coalition We Are Ohio announced today that in the first 30 days, they are at 93% of their target of 231,149 valid signatures.
“We are pleased to report 214,399 signatures have been collected in the first month,” said Melissa Fazekas, spokeswoman for We Are Ohio. “The unprecedented level of support from communities all across the state is staggering. While we continue to struggle to keep up with demand for petitions, we know this campaign is a marathon, not a sprint. We believe these early numbers will only serve to motivate our supporters to collect more signatures to ensure we reach the threshold of 231,149 valid signatures.”
We Are Ohio also shared three personal stories from the ground about Ohioans gathering signatures in Cleveland, Columbus and Wooster. In Cleveland, a man who has a hot dog cart and sells hot dogs in downtown Cleveland is also asking his customers to sign the petition to protect workers’ rights. In Columbus a school teacher signed up nearly 700 people at the Race for the Cure, adding to the nearly 4,000 total signatures she has personally collected. And, in Wooster more than 700 people signed the petition at a drive thru event.
We Are Ohio claims nearly 10,000 volunteers gathering signatures across the state. They have until June 30 to finish the signature gathering, and at this rate they should be able to reach the threshold for a referendum with relative ease. That would happen this November, coinciding with municipal elections in Ohio. Every local official would have to answer questions about whether they support the right to organize and collectively bargain. This could lead to a sea change at the local level in Ohio.
A Quinnipiac poll on SB 5 shows majority support for repealing the anti-union law. Ohioans support repeal by a 54-36 margin.
To relate this to my previous post, you can see why labor will be more active in the states than at the national level for the next year or so.
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despite the relentless pummelling of unions, and the complete lack of backup from politicians, and some union leaders, people still know the truth about unions.
every working person benefits from the “trickle up” effect of union negotiated benefits.
Go Ohio! Go! Go! GO!
Welcome news, DDAy. Thanks for the update and mightily glad to see it. Citizens who don’t understand how Unions benefit them, even if they’ve never been in a union, should study US history more closely.
The citizens of Ohio are speaking, and I welcome the truth that they’re telling. Best to them and good luck to us all.
Just curious: Is that 231,000 figure their target for total signature collection or is that the minimum number of valid signatures they need? In other words, is the 231,000 the minimum plus a projected sufficient cushion for disqualified signatures? If 231K is the number of valid signatures then they probably need to collect about 350,000 total signatures.
wow! Congratulations!
And a word of caution: Get well over the number of signatures required. You can easily count on at least 33% of them getting tossed out.
That’s just the way it tends to work. You can qualify and qualify the signers and you will still get folks who don’t meet the states requirements. That’s just the way it is. Its not that the state is trying to trick you and its not like the voters are plants. Sometimes people have moved and think they are registered at the new address but they are not. Sometimes they have married and changed their name, etc. Sometimes you misspell the name when you print it and thus it is not on the state roll, etc. it just happens.
and next year, if you happen to run for an office as an independent and are required to obtain signatures from qualified voters in your area: My advice to you is to obtain twice the number required.
VOICE OF EXPERIENCE FOLKS: In 2010 I gathered signatures to run as an Independent for US Representative 6th District here in Texas. We are required to gather 500 signatures of registered voters who did not vote in the primary. I gathered 650 signatures (just to be sure). I personally talked to over 1,500 people. I missed qualifying by 15 signatures.
They include a margin of error for invalid signatures.
Oh, they’ll get ‘em. They know their stuff.
Hope your right, but I wondered about the exactness of the number (231,149). Usually when setting up target numbers than include a cushion you establish a round figure target, such as 235,000 or 240,000 or something like that.