Ballot measure signature costs, 2025
Ballotpedia's cost-per-required-signature (CPRS) report analyzes the signature-gathering costs of ballot initiative campaigns. In 2025, two citizen-initiated measures are on the ballot, both on November 4.
Both initiatives are in Maine. Proponents of the initiatives conducted initiative petition signature drives, and the initiatives qualified to appear on the statewide ballot.
CPRS is calculated as a campaign's total spending on signature gathering relative to the number of valid signatures required. You can read more about how we measure signature gathering costs below.
Of the two initiatives, only one campaign spent money to gather signatures. The campaign for Question 1, relied on volunteers to gather signatures and had a $0.00 cost to collect signatures. The campaign for Question 2 spent $93,829.00 on signature gathering.
Measuring initiative petition signature drive costs
Campaigns spend funds to collect signatures. Campaigns hire signature-gathering companies, utilize unpaid volunteers, or use a mix of both. States have different ballot measure signature requirements and different population sizes, resulting in varied signature drive costs across states.
This report uses two ways to measure the cost of an initiative or veto referendum petition drive:
- According to the total cost of gathering the required signatures to put an initiative on the ballot
- According to the total cost divided by the number of signatures required to qualify the measure for the ballot or cost per required signature (CPRS)
The cost per required signature (CPRS) measures the costs based on the number of signatures required. CPRS allows us to compare the signature costs to get an initiative on the ballot within a state and between states. If a campaign spends $1 million on its petition drive and the state's signature requirement is 100,000, the CPRS is $10.00. In other words, the campaign spent $10.00 per required signature to qualify the initiative for the ballot.
Analysis, averages, and highlights
Total costs and averages
- For elections in 2025, two initiatives were certified for the ballot in one state (Maine). In total, $93,829.00 was spent to collect signatures for these initiatives. Cumulatively, the campaigns needed to collect 135,364 valid signatures.
- The average total petition cost for 2025 was $46,914.50.
- The average cost per required signature in 2025 was $0.70.
- During odd-numbered years from 2013 to 2025, an average of 4 initiatives appeared on the ballot. The average number of states with initiatives on the ballot in odd years was between two and three.
Signature drive costs in 2025
| State | Number of initiatives | Cumulative cost | Average cost per drive | Average CPRS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maine | 2 | $93,829.00 | $46914.50 | $0.70 |
Signature costs by state
The table below shows the number of required signatures, total petition drive cost, petition companies, and CPRS for each initiative in 2025.
Maine
- See also: Maine 2025 ballot measures
| Ballot Measure | Topic | Petition Companies | Cost | Signatures | CPRS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maine Question 1, Require Voter Photo ID and Change Absentee Ballot and Drop Box Rules Initiative (2025) | Absentee and mail voting | N/A | $0.00 | 67,682 | $0.00 |
| Maine Question 2, Extreme Risk Protection Orders to Restrict Firearms and Weapons Access Initiative (2025) | Firearms policy | Lookner Further Consulting Services | $93,829.00 | 67,682 | $1.39 |
Comparison of signature gathering costs in odd-numbered years
By total cost
The chart below shows the number of initiatives, the number of states featuring initiatives, the total cost of signature drives for the year, and the average total cost of a signature drive in each year.
During odd-numbered years from 2013 to 2025, an average of 4 initiatives appeared on the ballot. The average number of states with initiatives on the ballot in odd years was between two and three. The average total cost of signature gathering each year was about $4.7 million and the average cost per signature drive was about $1.02 million. The average CPRS across odd years from 2013 to 2025 was $7.25.
| Year | Number of initiatives | Number of states with initiatives | Cumulative cost | Average signature drive cost | Average CPRS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2 | 1 | $93,829.00 | $46,914.50 | $0.70 |
| 2023 | 7 | 3 | $12,953,417.17 | $1,850,488.17 | $9.38 |
| 2021 | 4 | 2 | $5,378,261.60 | $1,344,565.40 | $14.74 |
| 2019 | 2 | 1 | $1,397,177.88 | $698,588.94 | $2.69 |
| 2017 | 4 | 2 | $6,855,998.82 | $1,713,999.71 | $15.40 |
| 2015 | 5 | 4 | $4,874,720.41 | $974,944.08 | $3.57 |
| 2013 | 3 | 2 | $1,492,247.00 | $497,415.67 | $4.24 |
| Averages | 4 | 2 | $4,720,807.41 | $1,018,130.92 | $7.25 |
Factors affecting signature costs
- See also: Laws governing the initiative process
States have different requirements and restrictions for signature gathering, which can affect how expensive an initiative signature petition effort is. The total petition drive cost depends on the factors that can make a petition effort more or less expensive, including the population of the state and the state's signature requirements. This measurement does not indicate how difficult running a signature petition campaign is in a given state relative to other states. Requirements based on voter turnout, for instance, can result in different petition drive costs due to a state's population. For example, in 2016, the average cost of a successful initiative petition drive in California was $2.9 million. In Oklahoma, the average cost was about $870,000. Initiatives in California, however, required more than four times the number of signatures.
The cost-per-required-signature (CPRS) controls for the state's signature requirements and shows the cost for each signature needed for qualifying the measure for the ballot. This second measurement is a better indication of how difficult a signature drive is in a given state relative to other states. Returning to California and Oklahoma in 2016, the average CPRS in California was $6.20 and the average CPRS in Oklahoma was $9.59. However, the average total petition drive cost was $2.9 million in California and $870,000 in Oklahoma.
Greater signature requirements are an example of why initiative petition costs may be higher in one state compared to others. Other policies that can affect the cost of a petition campaign include:
- Distribution requirements - Collecting a large number of signatures in a few populous areas is more efficient than collecting a small number of signatures from multiple less-populated areas.
- Pay-per-signature bans - Paying signature gatherers by signature is likely a cost-efficient way to fund signature-gathering efforts.
- Restrictions on circulators - Restricting who can collect signatures may decrease the number of people available for signature gathering.
- Initiative petition circulation periods - Shorter signature gathering periods may increase signature drive costs.
See also
2025 ballot measures
CPRS reports
- Ballot measures cost per required signatures analysis
- Ballot measure signature costs, 2024
- Ballot measure signature costs, 2023
- Ballot measure signature costs, 2022
- Ballot measure signature costs, 2021
- Ballot measure signature costs, 2020
- Ballot measure signature costs, 2019
- Ballot measure signature costs, 2018
