320,000: Utah Just Made Referendum History
(...But Also, Who’s Trying to Kill It and Why the Most Important Part Is Still to Come)
We Did the Damn Thing. Now Let’s Keep It.
You’ve been with us through this whole rollercoaster. You read the Substack about why HB267 is a union-busting disaster, and you read the other one about how to fight back.
(And if you’ve been here since the Park City Ski Patroller Strike edition, extra credit. That was a good one.)
But today we’re coming at you with the best update of all:
WE. DID. IT.
HB267 was an attack on working people. So people got to work.
We showed up in the rain. In the snow. At Jazz games. At the TRAX station. At soda shops, tattoo parlors, libraries, and dog parks. And somehow, Utah managed to do what almost no other state has done.
We may have just pulled off the most successful referendum effort in the country. Is it technically provable? Maybe not. But given that Utah has some of the hardest referendum laws in the U.S., and this campaign blew past every known benchmark in state history, we’re calling it.
Now, of course, the opposition is in full meltdown. “You didn’t know what you were signing!” they cry. “This is just the scary national union machine!” they whimper. “Think of the children!” they shriek, while actively undermining the people who keep children safe: cops, nurses, teachers, firefighters.
So here’s your all-in-one kit. It’s a refresher, explainer, and defense kit all in one. A resource to send to your aunt, your coworker, your neighbor, or that random person in your group chat who says they “just have some questions.”
Here’s what we’re answering:
What the signature count means
How to counter the misinformation campaign
What to do when someone tries to get you to remove your name
And help us name this next phase
Because the truth is: we made history.
But the most important part, winning on the ballot, is still ahead.
Let’s go.
This Is What Collective Power Looks Like
In just 30 days, Utahns gathered and submitted more than 320,000 signatures to repeal HB267, the anti-worker law that would ban collective bargaining for public employees. Nurses, teachers, firefighters, cops, sanitation workers, and even your kid’s school lunch lady helped make this happen. And if that sounds like a random list of job titles, congratulations, you’ve just met the backbone of this state.
To put this in perspective: the signature requirement to qualify for the ballot was 140,748. The coalition nearly tripled that.
“We are on track to become not only the most successful citizen-led referendum in Utah history, but one of the most successful in our nation’s history.” — John Arthur, sixth-grade teacher and absolute legend
Even Salt Lake County Clerk Lannie Chapman, who has seen more than her fair share of election paperwork, called it the biggest referendum effort she’s ever seen.
And get this: Governor Cox, who signed the bill into law, was asked about the massive signature haul and literally said, “I think that’s good for them.”
Be serious. THAT’S your statement?
No explanation. No defense. Governor. Babe. Blink twice if you need a comms team. You signed this bill. Your party championed it. And now that 320,000 Utahns are pushing back, that’s all you’ve got?
The coalition behind this effort, Protect Utah Workers, is made up of 19 Utah unions. But that’s not the full coalition. Thousands of Utahns stepped up to volunteer, to sign their name on a petition from friends or strangers, and helped get the word out.
Now, if the signatures are verified and we meet the geographic distribution requirements, this referendum is headed to the 2026 ballot, putting HB267 on hold until voters decide whether the law should be repealed. That means, for the first time in a long time, the people, not just the politicians, get to have the final say.
Disinfo, Dark Money, and Doxxing: Meet the HB267 Defense Squad
The Legislature, the same folks who pushed HB267, also wrote the rules for how referendums work.
And while we’re all painfully familiar with the signature collection rules by now, there are plenty of rules baked into the process that make it easier for opposition groups to pressure voters into removing their names after they’ve signed.
Weird. Wonder why they did that?
Oh, and just for fun: opponents get 45 days to remove signatures.
We had 30 days to collect them.
Totally normal. Super fair. Great job, democracy.
So these opposition groups are using these laws for targeted signature removal efforts, and it’s in full swing.
Is it legal? Yes.
Is it ethical? Absolutely not.
They’ll say things like:
“You didn’t know your name would be public”
“You were misled”
“This referendum is about politics, not kids”
But here’s what they won’t say: they’re losing. They know the public is against them this time. And they’re afraid of what happens when the people have a voice.
This isn’t grassroots. It’s astro-turfed outrage, backed by big money, bigger lies, and a desperate effort to claw back control from the people who are finally paying attention.
Groups like Utah Parents United and Americans for Prosperity are running digital ads, radio spots, billboards, TV commercials, and mass texting campaigns to convince people to remove their names from the petition. As soon as your signature is verified and posted, their 45-day clock to get it removed starts. And you best believe they will start calling you and showing up at your door. They’ll try to guilt you, confuse you, or wear you down.
Their message is a mix of fear, guilt, and half-truths.
Let’s walk through their favorite talking points and why none of them hold up.
“It’s about kids, not unions!”
Ah, yes, the all-time favorite fearmonger line: protect the children! And as we’ve always said, if you care about kids, definitely hurt their teachers.
This message comes from the same people who directly and indirectly:
Underfund public schools
Push private school vouchers
Ban books
Bully trans and gay kids
Try to strip healthcare from immigrant children
Loosen restrictions on firearms
Remove fluoride from water (which disproportionately harms low-income kids)
Promote anti-vaccine conspiracies that have literally resulted in child deaths
And so much more!
In case they also banned American labor history books, here’s a reminder: The reason your kid isn’t in a factory or coal mine is because of unions.
Since the 1800s, organized labor has led the fight against child labor and unsafe working conditions. Teachers' unions are why we even have public education. They’ve defended it from privatization and political interference for decades.
So yes, you can support unions and kids. In fact, you can’t do one without the other.
This argument is especially infuriating because it’s not even an argument. It’s just a vague emotional appeal they recycle every time they’re losing: gay rights, trans rights, immigration, abortion, interracial marriage, banning books, DEI, CRT... should we keep going?
As a rule: if you say “protect the children” and you don’t mean clothe, shelter, feed, or educate them, you’re full of shit.
“People didn’t know what they were signing!”
This one’s both condescending and false.
Thanks to Utah’s absurdly strict referendum laws, every signer had to:
Be told multiple times what the petition was for
Receive a written receipt on how to remove their name
Be shown a summary of the law
Provide full identifying info, including address
Sign in person with a trained circulator
They weren’t confused. They weren’t tricked. They just read it, understood it, and disagreed with the Legislature. And now, the opposition can’t handle that.
“This Is All Funded by the Big Scary NEA”
Ah, yes, the classic “outside agitators” argument. When all else fails, just say “national special interests!” and hope people stop asking questions.
Yes, the National Education Association (NEA) supports the referendum. So does:
The Utah Education Association
American Federation of Teachers Utah
Professional Firefighters of Utah
Utah Health Workers United
The Fraternal Order of Police
14 other unions in Utah
Thousands of Utahns across the political spectrum
This is a broad, locally rooted, cross-sector coalition of teachers, nurses, firefighters, cops, miners, school staff, and more. The NEA didn’t parachute in with an agenda. They supported Utahns who were already leading this fight.
Meanwhile, let’s look at the other side:
Americans for Prosperity, an out-of-state, right-wing, Koch brothers’ billionaire-funded dark money organization that’s allergic to workers’ rights and loves a good tax cut for the ultra-rich (AKA a literal and infamous special interest group).
Utah Parents United, a far-right 501(c)(4) group with no public donor disclosures, is best known for COVID-19 conspiracies, book bans, and doxxing trans kids.
A newly formed PIC that, as of this publication, hasn’t reported any contributions at all
So let’s not pretend this is David vs. Goliath or that the “special interest groups” that are problematic are the unions.
It’s just two well-funded sides, one of which is actually made up of Utah workers and one of which is trying to trick you into un-signing a petition you believed in.
You want transparency? Protect Utah Workers files public financial disclosures. You can read them today. Their funders are clear, and their support comes from people who live and work here.
So yeah, maybe glass houses, y’all.
“Your Information Is Posted Online!”
Yes. The Lieutenant Governor posts the names of petition signers.
Not addresses. Not counties. Not contact info. Just names.
But if you listened to Utah Parents United, you’d think people were being thrown on some public hit list.
Which is... ironic. Considering this is the same group known for doxxing trans kids and harassing teachers online. Spare us the sudden concern for privacy.
And, the GOP supermajority Legislature wrote this rule intentionally.
They built the name-posting requirement into the referendum process, not for transparency, but to make it easier to target signers. It’s a tool designed to intimidate and suppress direct democracy.
So please: don’t act shocked that people followed the rules you created.
“HB267 Actually Protects Workers”
Sure. Like a brick protects a window.
Here’s what HB267 really does:
Bans public workers from collective bargaining
Takes away their right to negotiate wages, staffing, safety, and job protections
Forces every public worker to go it alone in one-on-one negotiations with the state
This isn’t about “empowering” workers. It’s about isolating them and breaking their ability to organize.
Collective bargaining is the process where workers elect representatives to negotiate with their employer, in this case, the state.
That’s how you get fair pay, safe staffing levels, due process protections, and predictable schedules.
HB267 kills that.
And calling this “giving workers more voice” is downright condescending.
It’s like taking away everyone’s microphones, locking them in separate rooms, handing them each a tin can on a string, and saying, “Now everyone gets to speak.”
You can talk all you want, but no one’s on the other end.
And no one else benefits.
Here’s the truth: This bill doesn’t protect workers, it protects the state from having to listen to them.
Want to give workers a real voice? Let them speak together.
“Very Few Unions Were Bargaining Anyway!” & “They Can Still Join A Union!”
So… why pass a statewide ban?
If collective bargaining was so rare, this wasn’t a fix, it was a warning shot. HB267 wasn’t designed to solve a problem. It was designed to preempt a growing labor movement. Because here’s what’s happening:
Ski patrollers in Park City went on strike and won
Nurses in Salt Lake are organizing
Firefighters have successfully negotiated pay increases and condition improvements
Teachers are growing their union ranks statewide
And the Legislature? They got scared.
They didn’t pass HB267 because unions were ineffective. They passed it because unions were starting to win. Worker wins make the folks at the top nervous, especially the ones who’ve built their empires by keeping wages low and voices quiet. You know, like their donors. And frankly, themselves.
And they know: if public workers organize, they don’t just bargain for better contracts, they build political power.
And that’s what this was really about all along.
“We’re Just Giving People a Chance to Change Their Minds”
You mean… intimidate them?
This “signature removal” campaign is built on fear, confusion, and aggressive outreach, including billboards, ads, misleading forms, targeted calls, and door-to-door efforts. And it’s being run by dark-money groups with zero accountability.
Let’s be clear:
Voters can change their minds. Even better, every voter gets to vote on this once it's on the ballot.
But this campaign isn’t about civic education or looking out for those voters. It’s pressure.
The referendum gathered over 320,000 face-to-face signatures. The opposition is hiding behind screens.
And let’s not forget: people can still vote no in 2026 if they change their mind. The ballot is where democracy happens, not a sketchy webform buried in a “Decline to Sign” ad.
What to Do If Someone Tries to Get You to Remove Your Signature
If someone tries to get you to remove your signature, remember:
You don’t have to respond.
You are not obligated to explain yourself.
You absolutely have the right to keep your name.
And if you want to double down? Talk to your friends who signed too. Tell them what’s going on. Because chances are, they’re being targeted too.
Let’s not let anyone get erased. Not after what we’ve built.
Not now. Not here.
