BASIC GUIDELINES FOR GATHERING SIGNATURES ON A PETITION

Even though this petition is non-binding on the Legislature, we are following the state guidelines for a legal petition to referendum.

You will note that the county is blank on the petition sheet. Each petition sheet should bear the name of the county in which you are gathering signatures. As you start each sheet fill in the county in which you are working or check the box if you are collecting signatures in Baltimore City. There should only be signatures from one specific county on any given sheet. If you find another voter from another county, start a new sheet for their county. You can turn in a petition with only one name on it.

The Petition Circulator must witness the actual signature of the Maryland registered voter. Please read and understand the Circulator’s Affidavit before gathering signatures.

The circulator must sign and date the Affidavit as an individual (not a business or organization), but only after all petition signers have signed and dated that page. Any signature on the page dated after the circulator’s Affidavit is invalid.

The circulator does not have to be a registered voter of Maryland, nor even a resident of Maryland. A circulator must be 18 years of age or older.

Quoting from the Maryland State Board of Elections (SBE) Procedures for Filing a Statewide or a Public Local Law Referendum Petition 2020-2022 Elections, Revised March 2019, available on SBE’s website:

“To sign a petition, an individual shall: (1) sign the individual’s name as it appears on the Statewide voter registration list or the individual’s surname of registration and at least one full given name and the initials of any other names.”

It further reads, “For example, a voter is registered as John Henry Smith. The printed name on the petition entry is John Smith. The signature on the petition entry is J. H. Smith. All components of the voter’s name as registered (surname, one full given name and the initial of any other name) are included when reviewing both the printed name and signature portions of the petition entry, and therefore the signature is accepted.” Continuing, “The printed name is not required to match the signature, but the names must be consistent. If the petition entry name does not include a suffix that appears on the voter registration list (e.g., Jr., Sr., III) but is otherwise sufficient, the name is acceptable.” Below are some examples. The voter is registered as John Henry Smith:

Printed Name Signed Name Acceptable or Not?
John Henry Smith John Henry Smith Acceptable
John Smith John H. Smith Acceptable
John Smith J. Henry Smith Acceptable
John Smith J. H. Smith Acceptable
J. Smith J. Smith Not Acceptable
J. Smith J. H. Smith Not Acceptable

Each voter is to provide his or her date of birth on the petition. This date helps the Board of Elections to identify the voter and validate his/her signature. Per SBE Procedures “If a voter refuses to provide a year of birth, the circulator should request month and day of birth at a minimum. A signature will not be invalidated merely because date of birth is omitted….”

Per SBE Procedures, “The petition circulator may fill in the information on the petition page, except for signature, only at the request of the signer.”

Below is a list of Prohibitions printed in the SBE Procedures:

A person may not willfully and knowingly:

-Give, transfer, promise, or offer anything of value for the purpose of inducing another person to sign or not sign any petition.

-Request, receive, or agree to receive, anything of value as an inducement to sign or not to sign any petition.

-Misrepresent any fact for the purpose of inducing another person to sign or not to sign any petition.

-Sign the name of any other person to a petition (except when assisting someone with a disability.)
-Falsify any signature or purported signature to a petition.

-Obtain, or attempt to obtain, any signature to a petition by fraud, duress, or force.

-Circulate, cause to be circulated, or file with an election authority a petition that contains any false, forged or fictitious signatures.-Sign a petition that the person is not legally qualified to sign.

-Sign a petition more than once.

-Alter any petition after it is filed with the election authority.

The voter should sign as they are known by the Board of Elections. They should be advised to contact the local Board of Elections to update their name change.

A 17 year-old can sign the petition if they are a registered voter and will turn 18 by the next general election.

The voter should sign the petition in black or blue ink. A signature and other data filled in with pencil would not be invalidated; however, it is discouraged due to the potential for smudge.
The circulator’s signature does not have to be notarized; however, the oath is signed under the penalty of perjury.

One word of caution, from the State Board of Elections website: The filling out of a voter registration application (VRA) does not register a voter to sign a petition. A voter can only sign a petition as a registered voter upon receipt of the voter notification card in the mail.

Vince Gisriel, Jr. 410-251-1360

ADDENDUM
A petition sheet does not have to have every signature block (1 thru 5) filled in to be valid. A sheet with a single name upon it is acceptable, provided the Circulator’s Affidavit Section is filled in on both sides of the bottom of the form, and signed by the circulator.

Our goal is to turn in the first batch of completed sheets by January 31st, 2024. They will be hand-delivered to the General Assembly. A second batch will be turned in by February 29th, 2024. A third and final batch will be turned in on April 1st, 2024.

Obviously, the main thrust should be to turn in as many petition sheets as possible on the first batch, which is early in the Legislative Session.

Completed petition sheets should be mailed to:
Vince Gisriel
14008 Sailing Rd
Ocean City, MD 21842

Please reach out to me if you have any questions at 410-251-1360. My email address is
vincentgisrieljr@gmail.com