Signature requirements for ballot measures in Washington
This page details signature requirements for statewide ballot measures in Washington.
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Washington ballot measures come in several different varieties:
- legislatively referred state statute - Appears on a state's ballot as a ballot measure because the state legislature in that state voted to put it before the voters.
- initiated state statute - Earns a spot on the ballot when sponsors collect signatures according to the laws governing the initiative process in Washington. In Washington, initiated state statutes come in two varieties:
- Initiatives to the People - Initiatives that go directly to the ballot if enough signatures are collected.
- Initiatives to the Legislature - Initiatives that go to the ballot indirectly if enough signatures are collected; these initiatives appear before the Washington State Legislature first.
- legislatively referred constitutional amendment - A constitutional amendment that appears on a state's ballot as a ballot measure because the state legislature in that state voted to put it before the voters.
- veto referendum - When citizens of Washington disagree with a statute or legislative bill enacted by the state legislature, they can collect signatures to force the issue to a vote. If enough signatures are collected, the bill is placed on the statewide ballot.
Signature requirements
In Washington, the signature requirement for citizen initiatives is based on the total number of votes cast for the office of governor at the last regular gubernatorial election. Initiatives to the People require signatures equal to eight (8) percent of the votes cast for the office of governor in the last election. Initiatives to the Legislature also require signatures equal to eight (8) percent of the votes cast for the office of governor in the last election. Veto referendum petitions require signatures equal to four (4) percent of the votes cast for the office of governor.
The signature requirement for Initiatives to the Legislature lags behind by one year. For example, based on the gubernatorial election of 2020, the signature requirement for Initiatives to the People and veto referendums changed for 2021 while the requirements for Initiatives to the Legislature remained unchanged until 2022.
The chart below shows election years and the signature requirement for initiatives designed to appear on the ballot in that year, with gubernatorial election years bolded.
| Year | Initiative to the People | Initiative to the Legislature | Veto referendum |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2029 | TBD | 308,911 | TBD |
| 2028 | 308,911 | 308,911 | 154,456 |
| 2027 | 308,911 | 308,911 | 154,456 |
| 2026 | 308,911 | 308,911 | 154,456 |
| 2025 | 308,911 | 324,516 | 154,456 |
| 2024 | 324,516 | 324,516 | 162,258 |
| 2023 | 324,516 | 324,516 | 162,258 |
| 2022 | 324,516 | 324,516 | 162,258 |
| 2021 | 324,516 | 259,622 | 162,258 |
| 2020 | 259,622 | 259,622 | 129,811 |
| 2019 | 259,622 | 259,622 | 129,811 |
| 2018 | 259,622 | 259,622 | 129,811 |
| 2017 | 259,622 | 246,372 | 129,811 |
| 2016 | 246,372 | 246,372 | 123,186 |
| 2015 | 246,372 | 246,372 | 123,186 |
| 2014 | 246,372 | 246,372 | 123,186 |
| 2013 | 246,372 | 240,229 | 123,186 |
| 2012 | 240,229 | 240,229 | 120,114 |
| 2011 | 240,229 | 240,229 | 120,114 |
| 2010 | 240,229 | 240,229 | 120,114 |
| 2009 | 240,229 | 224,880 | 120,114 |
| 2008 | 224,880 | 224,880 | 112,440 |
Changes in number of required signature
Basis for calculation
The following numbers of votes were cast for candidates for the office of governor in each year listed:
| Year | Votes cast for governor |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 3,861,388 |
| 2020 | 4,056,454 |
| 2016 | 3,245,282 |
| 2012 | 3,079,639 |
| 2008 | 3,002,862 |
Signature deadlines
In Washington, initial filings for direct initiatives cannot be made more than 10 months before the general election at which their proposal would be presented to voters. Initial filings for indirect initiatives cannot be made more than 10 months before the regular session at which their proposal would be presented to lawmakers.
Signatures for direct initiatives are due at least four months prior to the general election. Signatures for indirect initiatives are due at least 10 days prior to the beginning of the legislative session in the year of the targeted election.
2026
- See also: Ballot measure petition deadlines and requirements, 2026
To qualify an ITP or ITL for the 2025 ballot, 308,911 valid signatures were required. To qualify a veto referendum for the ballot, 154,456 valid signatures were required.
ITL: The last day to submit signatures for 2025 Initiatives to the Legislature to be submitted during the 2026 session is January 2, 2026, by 5:00 p.m. local time.[1]
ITP: Signatures for Initiatives to the People are due in early July 2026.[1]
VR: For veto referendums, signatures must be filed with the secretary of state within 90 days after the adjournment of the legislative session at which the targeted legislation was passed.[1]
2025
To qualify an ITP for the 2025 ballot, 308,911 valid signatures were required. To qualify an ITL for the 2025 ballot, 324,516 valid signatures were required.
ITL: The last day to submit signatures for 2024 Initiatives to the Legislature to be submitted during the 2025 session was January 3, 2025, by 5:00 p.m. local time.[1]
ITP: Signatures for Initiatives to the People were due by 5:00 p.m. local time on July 3, 2025.[1]
VR: For veto referendums, 154,455 valid signatures signatures must be filed with the secretary of state within 90 days after the adjournment of the legislative session at which the targeted legislation was passed.[1]
2024
To qualify an ITP or ITL for the 2024 ballot, 324,516 valid signatures were required. To qualify a veto referendum for the ballot, 162,258 valid signatures were required.
ITL: The first day to file an Initiative to the Legislature was March 8, 2023. The last day to submit signatures for Initiatives to the 2024 Legislature was December 29, 2023, by 5:00 p.m. local time.[1]
ITP: Signatures for Initiatives to the People were due by 5:00 p.m. local time on July 5, 2024.[1]
VR: For veto referendums, signatures must be filed with the secretary of state within 90 days after the adjournment of the legislative session at which the targeted legislation was passed. To qualify a veto referendum for the 2024 ballot, 162,258 valid signatures are required.[1]
2023
The last day to submit signatures for Initiatives to the 2023 Legislature was December 30, 2022, by 5:00 p.m. local time.[1]
The last day to submit signatures for Initiatives to the People targeting the 2023 ballot was July 7, 2023, by 5:00 p.m. local time.[1]
2022
The last day to submit signatures for Initiatives to the 2022 Legislature was December 31, 2021, by 5:00 p.m. local time.[1]
The last day to submit signatures for Initiatives to the People targeting the 2022 ballot was July 8, 2022, by 5:00 p.m. local time.[1]
2021
The last day to submit signatures for Initiatives to the 2021 Legislature was December 31, 2020, by 5:00 p.m. local time.[1]
The last day to submit signatures for Initiatives to the People targeting the 2021 ballot was July 2, 2021, by 5:00 p.m. local time.[2]
2020
The first day to file Initiatives to the Legislature to the 2020 Legislature was March 13, 2019.[3] The last day to submit signatures for Initiatives to the 2020 Legislature was January 3, 2020, by 5:00 p.m. local time.[1]
The first day to file Initiatives to the People in 2020 was January 3, 2020. The last day to submit signatures for Initiatives to the People targeting the 2020 ballot was July 2, 2020, by 5:00 p.m. local time.[2]
2019
The last day to submit signatures for Initiatives to the Legislature was January 4, 2019.[1]
The first day to file petitions for Initiatives to the People was January 5, 2019. The last day to submit signatures for Initiatives to the People was July 5, 2019.[1]
Petitions supporting a referendum measure must be filed with the Secretary of State no later than 90 days after adjournment of the legislative session at which the act to be referred was passed.[4]
2018
The last day to submit signatures for Initiatives to the 2018 Legislature was December 29, 2017. The first day to file petitions for Initiatives to the People was January 6, 2018. The last day to submit signatures for Initiatives to the People was July 6, 2018.
2017
December 30, 2016, was the signature deadline for initiatives to the legislature. July 7, 2017 was the signature deadline for Initiatives to the People. July 22, 2017, was the signature deadline for referendums.
2016
December 31, 2015, was the signature deadline for Initiatives to the Legislature. June 8, 2016, was the signature deadline for referendums. July 8, 2016 was the signature deadline for initiatives to the people.
2015
January 2, 2015, was the deadline for an 2015 Initiative to the Legislature. July 2, 2015, was the deadline for 2015 Initiatives to the People. July 24, 2015, was the deadline for 2015 referendums.[5]
2014
The deadline to file petitions supporting an Initiative to the People was July 3, 2014. Signatures for an Initiative to the Legislature were due in December 2013.[6]
2011
The filing period for an Initiative to the People began on January 10, 2011. The deadline to file signatures for an initiative to the people in order to qualify it for the 2011 Washington state ballot was July 6, 2011. The deadline to filed signatures for an Initiative to the Legislature was in December 2010.[7]
2010
The filing deadline for the November 2010 ballot for an Initiative to the Legislature was December 31, 2009. Signatures for an Initiative to the People were due in July 2010.
2009
Signatures for an Initiative to the Legislature were due in December 2008. The filing deadline for the November 2009 ballot for an Initiative to the People was July 2, 2009.
Recall
- To force a recall election, a number of signatures equaling 35 percent of the number of votes cast in the most recent election for the office held by the official facing recall must be collected.
- However, for statewide officers, only 25 percent is needed to force a recall election.
See also
- Ballot access requirements for political candidates in Washington
- States where signature requirements are based on votes cast for governor
- List of Washington ballot measures
- Ballot access laws challenged in Washington
- Signature privacy challenged in Washington
- Laws governing the initiative process in Washington
External links
- Filing Initiatives and Referenda in Washington State 2005 through 2008 from the Secretary of State
- Washington signature requirements collated by the Citizens in Charge Foundation
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 Washington Secretary of State, "Initiatives and referenda," accessed January 27, 2025 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "calendar" defined multiple times with different content Cite error: Invalid<ref>tag; name "calendar" defined multiple times with different content Cite error: Invalid<ref>tag; name "calendar" defined multiple times with different content Cite error: Invalid<ref>tag; name "calendar" defined multiple times with different content Cite error: Invalid<ref>tag; name "calendar" defined multiple times with different content Cite error: Invalid<ref>tag; name "calendar" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ 2.0 2.1 Washington Secretary of State, "Proposed Initiatives to the People - 2021," accessed December 8, 2020 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "SoS" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "Filing an initiative," accessed December 21, 2018
- ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "Frequently Asked Questions about Circulating Initiative and Referendum Petitions," accessed December 21, 2018
- ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "Elections Calendar," accessed December 16, 2013
- ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "Elections Calendar," accessed April 10, 2014
- ↑ Washington Secretary of State, "2011 Election Calendar," accessed April 10, 2014
