National Voter Outreach official criticizes characterization of petition circulators

by Marie Price

The Journal Record

7/6/2006

OKLAHOMA CITY – The president of the national firm that operated the recent Taxpayer Bill of Rights petition signature drive said Wednesday that the public is getting an incorrect view of petition circulators from signature challenge hearings being conducted before an Oklahoma Supreme Court referee.

Susan Johnson, president of National Voter Outreach, was responding to testimony given last week by circulator Robert Colby, who admitted to lying about his place of residence, address and other information. Colby also indicated this type of activity is common among professional circulators.

“I think that Robert Colby gives everybody a bad name that has to do with the petition drive,” she said.

Under state law, petition circulators must be “qualified electors,” that is individuals who are qualified to register to vote. One of the requirements for voter registration is being an Oklahoma resident.

Johnson said Oklahoma election officials assured NVO that as soon as someone “crosses into Oklahoma,” they can register to vote.

“Based on Oklahoma’s law, anyone is a resident who comes to work,” Johnson said.

She said that covers paid TABOR circulators who came into Oklahoma to gather signatures.

“This is honest work,” Johnson said. “Every single person who came into Oklahoma was considered a resident. They talked about residency issues before they came. It’s my position that they are residents, until the court says otherwise.”

State Election Board Secretary Michael Clingman said the issue of just what “residency” means in Oklahoma is rehashed every couple of years or so during election challenges or an arena such as the TABOR signature hearings, pretty much on a case-by-case basis.

Clingman said the voter registration process requires, among other things, a declaration that the individual is an Oklahoma resident.

He said Oklahoma law does not require a specific period of time to become a resident.

“It’s really only explored if there’s some sort of a contest,” Clingman said. “It’s really a fact question as to whether your intent as a resident is true.”

Johnson said she does not ask circulators to lie or hide things.

“That is not how NVO operates,” she said.

Johnson said NVO complies with circulator requirements in the states in which it operates.

Johnson, who said she resisted a request from TABOR protestants’ attorneys for “every scrap of paper, down to the last Post-It note,” said she agreed to turn over information on the residency issue before the court.

“I have nothing to hide,” she said.

Johnson has also given a deposition in the case.

Johnson acknowledged referring to some circulators as a “Missouri crew” and “62 pros” in an e-mail.

It is not illegal in Oklahoma to pay petition circulators.

“I followed the law,” Johnson said.

Johnson also contended that some of the people who are criticizing the circulators themselves brought in people from out of state to harass circulators and block people from signing the TABOR petition, in violation of Oklahoma law.

“It made it very difficult for people to get signatures,” she said.

Such actions impede people’s right to petition the government, she added.

“They are afraid of the free ideas and the free marketplace,” Johnson said. “They don’t want a debate over the issue. They want to shut it down before it even becomes a debate.”

Johnson said NVO conducts validity tests on 20 percent to 30 percent of the signatures circulators gather, checking them against voter lists. She said that potentially invalid signatures must be submitted along with others because they are all on the same petition sheets.

“I can’t just cross them off,” she said. “Those are people who are residents of Oklahoma wanting their voice to be heard.”

Johnson said NVO has been in existence since 1992 and has worked on more than 400 petition drives. She said she has been in the business, first as a circulator, since 1979.

“In any industry, there are going to be people who are want to scam the system,” she said. “But the industry shouldn’t be defined by dishonest people. The industry should be defined by those who are running it and leading it.”

Johnson said she has hired a retired police chief to run her risk-management division, to make sure people are doing what they’re supposed to do.

“I take it very seriously,” she said.