Today, for the second year in a row, a campaign to rollback non-discrimination protections for transgender people failed to turn in enough signatures to qualify for the ballot in Washington State. The WA Secretary of State’s office announced that the I-1552 campaign cancelled its appointment today to turn in 259,622 valid signatures.

“Anti-equality activists spent hundreds of thousands of dollars attempting to pass a shameful ballot measure aimed at discriminating against LGBTQ people, but thanks to the fair-minded people of Washington State, they have failed,” said Marty Rouse, HRC National Field Director. “For months, our opponents attempted to garner enough signatures to put the fundamental civil rights of transgender people on the ballot. Their failure is a victory for equality and validation of Washington’s non-discrimination laws that ensure fair and equal treatment for LGBTQ people in housing, employment, and public accommodations. HRC was proud to work closely with the Washington Won’t Discriminate campaign and will keep up the fight in Washington and across the country.”

HRC worked closely with Washington Won’t Discriminate, Pride Foundation, ACLU-WA, Equal Rights Washington, Gender Justice League, Planned Parenthood and other local coalitions urging Washington residents to “Decline To Sign” the dangerous petition that would have put the discriminatory, anti-trans measure on the ballot in November.

Throughout the month of June, HRC worked to raise awareness about the discriminatory proposal at four Washington area prides, including Ellensburg, Spokane, Olympia and Seattle. At these events, HRC staff, local leaders, and volunteers collected approximately 500 “Decline To Sign” signatures supporting the efforts to keep the state’s current law in place.

HRC remains steadfast in its commitment to keep existing non-discrimination laws in place and will continue working with local coalition partners on the ground to ensure that transgender Washingtonians feel safe in the Evergreen State.

Pictured above from left to right: Jeremiah Allen- Project Director at Pride Foundation, Liezl Rebugio- Field director at ACLU-WA, Narissa Rahaman, and Carlos Padilla - Organizing Director at Washington Won't Discriminate.