Maine’s Secretary of State ruled that Protect Girls’ Sports in Maine submitted invalid and forged signatures for a November ballot measure. The campaign sought to ban trans students from school sports and restrooms. It submitted 79,692 signatures, exceeding the 67,682 required, but a court review invalidated 12,542 signatures, leaving the campaign 532 signatures short. Signatures were rejected because collectors did not witness signings as required, signatures did not match voter registry records, some signers signed more than once, some signers were not registered voters, and some signatures were forgeries. Collectors were paid $3 to $4 per signature. The measure therefore will not appear on the ballot. The proposed definition of sex relied on biological status recorded at birth and would have removed trans students from legal protections under the Maine Human Rights Act.
"Maine's Secretary of State Shenna Bellows ruled on Tuesday that Protect Girls' Sports in Maine, an anti-transgender campaign, submitted invalid and forged signatures in its bid for a November ballot measure that sought to ban trans students from school sports and restrooms. As a result, the measure will not appear on the voting ballot this November, Erin in the Morning reported."
"The campaign, bankrolled by out-of-state billionaire Richard Uihlein, submitted 79,692 signatures - well over the 67,682 required to qualify. However, a court review of the campaign's petitions in May invalidated 12,542 of the signatures, leaving the campaign 532 signatures short of the required number."
"Some of the signatures were thrown out because the collectors didn't witness the signing (as required by state law). Others were invalidated because the signatures did not match the voters' signatures on voter registries, because the signatories signed more than once, because the signers weren't registered voters, or because the signatures were forgeries. Collectors were paid $3 to $4 per signature."
"The ballot measure would've defined a student's sex as "a biological status as male or female recorded at birth on the person's original birth certificate," effectively ending any legal recognition of trans students, not just in the cases of restrooms and sports. It also would've carved trans students out of legal protections enshrined in the Maine Human Rights Act (a statewide anti-discrimination law), and would've allowed cisgender students to sue any school that allowed trans students to u"
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