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SALT LAKE CITY -- The Utah Supreme Court said Tuesday that state election officials must accept online petition signatures to qualify individuals for the ballot.
This ruling is the first of its kind nationwide. It promises to make it easier for candidates and causes to use the Internet as part of the political process.
"A signature under (Utah law) does not require a signor to physically handle a piece of paper and sign her name with a pen," justices said in a 15-page ruling issued as voters went to the polls for primary elections. "An electronic signature is sufficient to satisfy the election code."
Anderson v. BellThe case is Anderson v. Bell, as in independent candidate Farley Anderson versus Lt. Gov. Greg Bell.
In March, Utah Lt. Gov. Greg Bell rejected a nominating petition from Farley Anderson, an independent gubernatorial candidate, saying state law did not allow for e-signatures.
Anderson gathered the 1,000 signatures needed to get on the ballot -- something not required of major party candidate -- but more than 150 of those signatures were collected online.
In its unanimous ruling, the court said Bell's decision "exceeded the bounds of discretion" afforded his office. The ruling orders signatures submitted by Anderson be recounted to determine whether he qualifies for the November ballot.
"The point is, we didn't know, we didn't have a ruling," Bell said. "The highest court in the state has spoken, and we'll abide by it."
"This is a win for everyone in our state," Anderson said. "We're setting a precedent for the entire nation to follow. I'm so well pleased I could pop a button."
Decision could influence nation
"The court's opinion, which is the first of its kind nationwide, has the potential to increase significantly the ability of independent candidates to access the general election ballots," said Darcy Goddard, legal director for the Utah chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, which argued the case on Anderson's behalf.
The court's opinion, which is the first of its kind nationwide, has the potential to increase significantly the ability of independent candidates to access the general election ballots.
–Darcy Goddard, Utah ACLU
"This is a brave new world, going where no one has gone before," Bell said in a news conference Tuesday afternoon.
The lieutenant governor says he'll follow the decision and may need guidance from lawmakers about rules for e-signatures.
"Now pursuant to this decision I have to come up with protocols and rules governing that," he said.
Anderson called Tuesday's ruling a historic event for all Utahns interested in the democratic process.
Anderson says he knows his chances in the governor's race are slim -- but he's still got a potentially-historic court ruling with his name on it.
"It's humbling, very humbling," he said. "I know I'm just a common guy, but our state is made up of common people. And this day the common guy won against city hall."
Issue of verification not addressed by court
The court's ruling could also preview a showdown over the use of e-signatures to get initiatives and referendums on the ballot. Utah doesn't require signature verification for candidate petitions, but state election law requires signatures on initiative and referendum petitions to be verified by county clerks.
It looks like Farley Anderson will be on the ballot -- as long as Bell's office proves that the e-signatures are valid.
"This is a complicated area because what we have is people gathering signatures on their own websites, who are deciding what's valid and what's not in terms of signing up. I don't have control over that," Bell said.
The verification issue wasn't addressed by the court, but Tuesday's ruling may help grassroots groups more easily clear the initial hurdle of collecting signatures, said Steve Maxfield, who has been collecting online signatures for an initiative concerning legislative ethics.
Utah law acknowledges that electronic signatures are valid substitutes for handwritten ones, but the state attorney general's office argued that e-signatures on petitions could not be counted because election law only contemplates a paper-based system.
No other state allows for e-signatures in the election process.
"I think that it's going to be very influential in other states," Goddard said. "The common law is the same nationwide."
Electronic signature forms require a signer to submit the same information as they would on a paper petition -- name, address and birthday. Anderson used the website https://www.i-sign.us to collect his petition signatures. A petition is now posted there for Steven G. Maxfield, who is Anderson's running mate for lieutenant governor.
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Story compiled with contributions from John Daley, Jennifer Dobner with the Associated Press and Cleon Wall.
