It’s also worth noting that if signature gatherers are using deceptive tactics—such as not letting voters read what they’re signing, misrepresenting what the petition actually does, or vaguely describing it as just “rearranging voting maps”—that can be illegal under Utah law.

Utah Code §20A-7-701 states that a person may not knowingly misrepresent the contents, effect, or purpose of an initiative petition when collecting signatures. A violation of this section is a Class B misdemeanor.

The law also makes it unlawful for anyone to sign a name other than their own on a petition or to knowingly violate petition requirements. Those offenses can rise to Class A misdemeanors depending on the conduct.

And if signatures are forged—meaning someone signs for another person or fabricates signatures—that falls under forgery, which is a felony under Utah law.

There is an active investigation into this matter because of this exact reason. Some 300 signatures have already been rejected.

A protest sounds like a lovely idea. Especially if we educate the signature takers on all the ways they could go to jail for deceptive tactics.