Do petitions actually have an affect or do they do just express that people want change?
In: Other
Just FYI, people are talking about different types of petitions, here.
There are “official” petitions in the US that get candidates and propositions on ballots. These absolutely have an effect and, in many states, is the *only* way to get on the ballot.
Other types of petitions don’t have any “official” effect and rarely have any real effect. It is very rare that a petition gives anyone new information. Whatever petition you signed, there’s another opposed petition that has just as many signatures. And most petitions are so vague and useless it means nothing.
Like, say you sign a petition saying you want action for climate change. Most people would sign that. But if it was “sign a petition to enact a carbon tax that would cost poor and middle class people an extra $2000 a year” you might as well throw that directly into trash.
So “citizen’s petitions” are usually useless. Signing a piece of paper is free. Convincing people to take real action is hard.
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