Mesa County Commissioner Rose Pugliese held a petition signing event from 3:30-5:30 p.m. Tuesday at Citrola’s Italian Grill to fight against Colorado Senate Bill 42. Mesa County residents filled the restaurant in a line that extended into the street for their chance to sign.
The Colorado General Assembly recently passed SB42, which requires Colorado electoral votes to go to the winner of the National Popular Vote in a presidential election. SB42 gives the electoral votes to that candidate regardless of how Colorado voters cast their ballots.
Pugliese and other Colorado politicians have taken action to put the matter on the November 2020 ballot. The movement has until Aug. 1 to collect 200,000 signatures from Colorado voters. If Pugliese successfully gathers enough signatures by the deadline, the National Popular Vote will be blocked until Coloradans vote on the ballot issue.
The petition signing event at Citrola’s was the first event in Grand Junction and one of several throughout Colorado. “I’m going to say we have five or six set up already throughout the state,” Pugliese said “This is our first kick off one in Grand Junction and we’ll have multiple petition signing events throughout the next couple of weeks.”
According to Pugliese, the petition resulted from voters appealing to her. “People were stopping me on Main Street saying, ‘hey we need to stand up and there’s something we need to do to stop this,'” Pugliese said.
“I was approached by so many people that I wanted to do something about it,” Pugliese said. “I talked to my political friends throughout the state, and filed a petition with Mayor Don Wilson of Monument, so that when the Governor signed the bill into law, we would have the opportunity to petition to have this on the ballot; which is what we’re working on right now.”
Several Community members responded to Pugliese efforts by coming early and waiting for their chance to sign. Citrola’s gave the early arrivals a section of the restaurant to sit and converse while they waited.
“I’ve come here to sign this petition because I don’t want these things being snuck in when we voted it down,” Mesa County resident Verna Melgares said while she waited for the event to begin. “This is not fair, it’s not right. I don’t care what anybody says, I’m sick of people taking away our rights.”
“I just hope a lot of people do exercise their rights and come here and vote or find something to do to help stop this,” Melgares said.
Once the signing event began, community members stood in a line that extended throughout the restaurant and onto the sidewalk outside. Pugliese said the response gave her confidence the petition will be successful.
“Just the outpouring of support we’ve received, the amount of people who want petitions, has been absolutely overwhelming. And so I don’t think we’ll have any problem getting petition signatures,” Pugliese said. “I have no doubt we’ll get them even before the Aug. 1 deadline.”
