Citizens in Charge

Montana elections officials have found forged signatures on petitions for a proposed measure dealing with wildlife in at least four counties. Both the sponsors of the petition drive and the Billings Gazette are calling for those responsible to be prosecuted. Add Citizens in Charge to that list.

When people forge or fraudulently obtain signatures, they should be punished. Their guilt and punishment will serve as a warning to them and any other would-be perpetrators of fraud.

Unfortunately, many don’t just want those who break the law punished - they want to punish those who don’t break the law too. Ballot fraud - actual, alleged, or imagined - is often used as a clarion call for those who want to restrict voters’ right to initiative and referendum petitioning. To stop fraud, they argue, severe restrictions must be put on those who collect signatures and propose measures. The problem is that those restrictions end up silencing voters by making it harder and more costly to put laws on the ballot. To avoid the very slim possibility of something getting on the ballot that shouldn’t be there, the very real possibility of something not getting on the ballot that should be is created. In the end it is the voters who lose.

It is interesting to note that in this case that the “signature gatherers [in question] were hired by employment agencies.” Montana has a law banning anyone from another state from circulating a petition. As a result, the bulk of signature gatherers in any Montana initiative campaign are not going to be experienced professionals who typically travel from state to state. While many are critical of professional signature collectors, unlike inexperienced local collectors, professionals are not only far more likely to know the laws regarding forgery and fraud, but they also rely on their reputations and ability to get valid signatures in order to stay employed in the field. When forgery or fraud is committed, it isn’t just the state and voters who are ripped off, but the supporters of the petition effort and petition managers who have paid for signatures that are not going to count toward their goal. Few sponsors or managers will employ someone who has proven they will try to rip them off with bad signatures. Had Montana’s Secretary of State taken notice of the many, many courts that have found that residency requirements for circulators violate the U.S. Constitution and voluntarily ended the state’s requirement, these forgeries may never have happened.

We hope that those responsible are brought to justice, and that’s all. No new laws misguidedly trying to prevent fraud, no new restrictions on the peoples’ right to initiative and referendum in Montana.