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R-71: Thursday error rate nudges to 15 percent

R-71: Thursday error rate nudges to 15 percent

Referendum checkers, beefing up their efforts to determine whether R-71 gets a place on the statewide ballot, have processed another 3,831 signatures, bringing the total to over 27,000 checked so far. The latest daily count reflected an rejection rate approaching 15 percent.  The state Election Division crew rejected 573 signatures, mostly because the signers weren’t registered Washington voters, for a daily error rate of 14.96 percent. That was the highest daily error rate recorded in the first five days of signature-verification, and…

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R-71 update: Over 11,000 names checked

R-71 update: Over 11,000 names checked

State Election workers, on the second day of checking signatures for Referendum 71, have now processed over 11,000 names, and the campaign’s error rate continues at a low 12.31 percent level. As of close of business Monday, 11,502 signatures have been checked, and 10,087 have been accepted and 1,415 have been rejected, mostly because the person does not show up on the voter rolls.  The supervisor of the initiatives and referendum desk notes that the error rate will vary somewhat from day to day….

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UPDATE: R-71 processing begins, disclosure challenged

UPDATE: R-71 processing begins, disclosure challenged

State election crews have begun counting the signatures submitted by sponsors of Referendum 71, the effort to force a public vote in November on the state’s newly expanded domestic partnership law.  Sponsors, called Protect Washington Families, meanwhile, are taking the state to court to try to block public release of the names of people who signed their petitions. After state Archives completed microfilming of 9,359 petition sheets, about 20 crew members began counting the raw number of voter signatures submitted by…

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Re: R-71 backers bring in signature petitions

Re: R-71 backers bring in signature petitions

Election officials have begun processing Referendum 71 petitions submitted by foes of a new “everything but marriage” domestic partnership law.  It seems likely that a full signature check will be required, rather than a speedier random-sample check. The sponsors, Protect Marriage Washington, hope to force a public vote in November on Senate Bill 5688, which extends all of the rights and responsibilities now afforded to marriage couples to same-sex partners and opposite-sex couples where one or more partners is 62…

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R-71 backers bring in signature petitions

R-71 backers bring in signature petitions

Sponsors of Referendum 71, hoping to force a public vote this fall on the state’s new “everything but marriage” domestic partnership bill, have brought in what they estimate are least 138,000 voter signatures. The bare minimum to qualify for the Nov. 3 statewide ballot is 120,577, but traditionally an average of about 18 percent turn out to be invalid. The state Elections Division has recommended that referendum sponsors bring in a 25 percent pad, for a total of about 150,000 or more. The…

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R-71 sponsors plan Saturday signature turn-in

R-71 sponsors plan Saturday signature turn-in

Sponsors of Referendum 71, seeking a public vote this fall on the state’s new “everything but marriage” domestic partnership bill, plan to submit their petitions to the State Elections Division on Saturday afternoon. The organizers, Protect Marriage Washington, have made arrangements to bring in boxloads of voter signatures at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Secretary of State’s Office in the Capitol.  It takes 120,573 valid signatures to earn a place on the Nov. 3 statewide ballot.  Election officials suggest a…

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R-71 monitoring plan draws Eyman fire

R-71 monitoring plan draws Eyman fire

Initiative promoter Tim Eyman is taking aim at potential harassment of signature-gatherers  and people who sign their petitions.  One feature of his new initiative says the names, signatures and addresses of people who sign initiatives and referenda would be blacked out before petition sheets are made public by the state Elections Division. This grows out of announced plans by some supporters of a new “everything but marriage” domestic partnership law to put online the names and addresses of all who sign…

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