Citizens in Charge

Getting an initiative on the ballot is a very difficult undertaking in most places, but the use of new technology has the potential to revolutionize the petition signature gathering process. In both California and Utah, initiative campaigns are now using the internet and smartphones to gather petition signatures from voters. There will no doubt be legal challenges to these new high-tech signature gathering methods, as laws in California and Utah do not specifically allow for electronic signatures.

But a better day is close at hand. Not just because the technology is neat, but because this revolution can make the initiative process more open & accessible to millions of people, even those without money.

Citizens in Charge Foundation fully supports these new efforts to open up the process, and we strive to keep ourselves up-to-date on the most recent breakthroughs in signature gathering. In fact, our most recent Lilburne Award was given to The Citizen Power Campaign in California for their use of new smartphone technology that allows citizens to sign a petition right from their smartphone.

I ran across an article earlier today on a Utah group that is pioneering the use of online signatures to get an ethics law on the ballot. Much like the new smartphone signature technology in California, working out any legal snags is key. For citizens to be able to sign a petition and use their free speech rights in such a convenient and quick manner would be great for the initiative process.

Another thing that stood out to me in the article was the quote from Joel Foster, of the Ballot Initiative Strategy Center. When asked about the new technology and what the group’s position on it was, he responded, “Frankly, I think it’s so new we haven’t had a chance to look in-depth to see if it would be safe for the public.” While I don’t discount his sincerity in looking out for the public good, Americans don’t need a full-time babysitter or a Big Brother to protect them from themselves. Our government must both welcome new technology and protect people from problems that can and will develop from time to time. What we don’t need are people hyping fear as a way to keep the initiative process out of the political and financial reach of regular people.

No, what the American voter needs is the ability to easily (and legally of course) use their right to petition their government. Citizens across the country are creating new and innovative ways to accomplish this, and while Joel Foster from the Ballot Initiative Strategy Center might not be aware of these efforts, we at Citizens in Charge Foundation certainly are, and we support these moves to a more open and accessible initiative and referendum process 100 percent.