ISSAQUAH, December 18, 2023—A woman defaced a signed statewide petition for I-2124 Opt Out of State-run Long Term Care Coverage Act, at an Issaquah Costco located at 1801 10th Avenue NW on Sunday evening.
HAPPENING NOW: This woman just crossed out a page of voter signatures at the Issaquah Costco, which is a gross misdemeanor. This comes amid Democrat-backed effort to harass and intimidate Let’s Go WA signature gatherers (black marks mine to protect voter info).🧵 pic.twitter.com/TCppP40VIG
— Brandi Kruse (@BrandiKruse) December 18, 2023
First reported and witnessed by unDivided host Brandi Kruse, the incident took place at approximately 5 p.m. as petitioners were collecting signatures behind a table at the Issaquah Costco. The woman approached the area then drew a diagonal line through the petition, apparently intentionally defacing it, that crossed over at least two signatures.
The suspect ran and hid behind a Costco employee after a short chase. According to Kruse, Police were called by Costco employees not on the suspect who defaced petitions in an possible attempt of election interference – a gross misdemeanor under RCW 29A.84.050 – but against the signature gathers.
According to the Secretary of State’s Office, signature gathering for “ballot measure petitions is a constitutionally guaranteed practice,” however the does not extend to all commercial private property.
After speaking with the police, the petitioners eventually packed up and left the wholesaler without incident.
Sunday’s incident is the latest in a series of intimidation tactics from opponents to the Let’s Go Washington effort to get six initiatives to lawmakers for the 2024 legislature session.
The Washington State Democrat Party has come under fire for impeding the initiative process by actively campaigning to dissuade voters from signing statewide initiatives by Let’s Go Washington.
“The extreme Washington GOP is teaming up with the mega-rich to pass a set of ballot initiatives that would hurt working Washingtonians,” a post reads by the Washington State Democratic Party on X.
🚨The extreme Washington GOP is teaming up with the mega-rich to pass a set of ballot initiatives that would hurt working Washingtonians. Three ways you can help:
1) Decline to sign
2) Spread the word
2) Call the hotline, (425) 553-2175, to report signature gatherersRead on: pic.twitter.com/sWDcRvksfa
— Washington Democrats (@washdems) December 5, 2023
The post went on to encourage members to report locations of signature gatherers, who, are being harassed and concerned for their safety.
On November 21, Let’s Go Washington submitted 418,399 signatures to the Secretary of State’s Office to repeal provisions of the Washington Climate Commitment Act, also known as Cap-and-Invest, passed by the legislature in 2021. On December 12, 423,399 signatures were turned in to establish Washington state’s first Parental Bill of Rights, and just last week, I-2113 restoring he state’s policy regarding police pursuits, were turned into the Secretary of State’s Office with over 400,000 signatures.
The citizens action group, led by Brian Heywood, is currently collecting signatures on three remaining statewide initiatives which are:
- I-2124: Opt Out Of State-Run Long Term Care Coverage Act
- I-2109: Repeal the Capital Gains Tax
- I-2111: No State Income Tax
Residents can sign any or all petitions at one of over 150 locations across the state. In Snohomish County, those locations are the following:
- Family Policy Institute, 16108 Ash Way #107, Lynnwood, WA, 425-608-0242
- Pulse for Health, North Kelsey Street, Monroe, WA
- Sound Loan, Wetmore Ave, Everett, WA
The team at Let’s Go Washington are confident they will get all six statewide initiatives on the November ballot saying that these issues are popular with Washingtonians. The group’s deadline to turn in signatures for the remaining five initiatives is December 29, 2023.
To learn more visit https://letsgowashington.com/, email contact@letsgowa.com, or call 425-403-8185.
Author: Mario Lotmore
