Eugene Volokh comments on a recent Ninth Circuit decision concerning the release of signatures on a public petition: I don’t think that secrecy of signatures is constitutionally mandated by the First Amendment, just as I don’t think that a secret ballot is constitutionally mandated by the First Amendment. True, the anonymous speech precedents bar the…
Tag: Protect Marriage Washington
Release R-71 signatures, court says, but appeal planned
Lornet Turnbull reports: Protect Marriage Washington, which collected the signatures to get Referendum 71 on the November ballot, said it will appeal Thursday’s federal appeals-court ruling that cleared the way for public release of the names of those who signed petitions for the measure. “That particular group of judges saw the law one way; we’ll…
Privacy v transparency
If you sign a petition supporting a controversial ballot referendum should your name and address be publicized (posted online) in the interests of transparency? Do you have a right to privacy or relative anonymity when you engage in political advocacy that trumps the public right to know your identity? These difficult, increasingly familiar questions are…