FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, March 22, 2024
CONTACT:
Nikolas Schiller: 202-643-3878, Adam Eidinger: 202-744-2671
Press@MakeAllVotesCountDC.org
The Yes on 83 Campaign Has Collected Over 10,000 Signatures from DC Voters
Campaign on Pace to Collect over 30,000 Signatures by July 8 Deadline
*** Campaign Staff and Petition Circulators Available for Interview & B-Roll ***
WASHINGTON, DC — Today the Yes on 83 campaign is proud to announce that over 10,000 DC voters have signed the Initiative 83 petition since January 10, 2024. The campaign has until Monday, July 8, 2024 to collect the signatures of 5% of the registered DC voters in five of the eight wards of the District in order to place the ballot initiative on the November 2024 general election ballot. With over 10,000 signatures collected, the campaign is approximately one third of the way to its goal of 30,000 signatures.
“Voters are enthusiastically in support of our effort to achieve ballot access,” says Kris Furnish, Field Director and Steering Committee member for the Yes on 83 campaign. “I’ve seen firsthand when petition circulators mention ‘ranked choice voting,’ voters stop in their tracks, immediately turn around, and ask to sign the petition.”
The campaign has trained nearly 200 petition circulators who have engaged tens of thousands of voters in all 8 wards. From farmers markets to post offices and grocery stores to Metro stations, the Yes on 83 campaign believes that the proposed electoral reforms of ranked choice voting and opening DC’s primary elections to independent voters outlined in Initiative 83 resonates with voters across the District.
If Initiative 83 is approved by voters in the November general election, and any potential funding requirements are appropriated by the DC Council in FY2025 and FY2026, the first applicable election of the Ranked Choice Voting and Open the Primary Elections to Independent Voters Act of 2024 would be the June 2026 primary election. The campaign asserts that these two electoral reforms will help stop DC voter suppression and make it easier to hold local politicians accountable.
For more information about the Yes on 83 campaign visit: www.YesOn83.org
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