(return to newsroom)


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Ryan Houck: (407) 496-4035
10/20/08

CONGRATULATIONS TO FLORIDA HOMETOWN DEMOCRACY, INC: YOU�RE STILL TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE!

(ORLANDO, FL - October 20, 2008) Major donors to the so-called �Hometown Democracy� amendment issued a statement Saturday claiming that they have collected enough valid signatures to reach the ballot two years from now - in 2010.

Sierra Club leader John Hedrick reported that Hometown Democracy has submitted 611,753 valid signatures and demanded that the Division of Elections �immediately certify FHD for the 2010 ballot.�

�They are embarrassing themselves,� said Ryan Houck, executive director for Floridians for Smarter Growth. �They�ve crossed the 50-yard line and decided to call it a touchdown.�

According to Florida law, the number of signatures required to reach the 2010 ballot will be based on voter turnout during the 2008 Presidential Election. As a result, it is not yet known how many signatures will be required to reach the ballot in 2010. However, after failing to reach this year�s ballot, Florida Hometown Democracy (FHD) ringleaders filed a lawsuit in which they claimed they would be �forced to invest the effort and expense necessary to obtain many thousands of additional signatures in order to qualify for the general election ballot in 2010.�

�In July, Hometown Democracy told a federal judge they would need to collect �many thousands of additional signatures� in order to reach the 2010 ballot,� said Houck. �Now, they�re saying they have enough. Either they lied to a federal judge three months ago or they�re lying to the press and the voters today.�

In 2006, the number of signatures required to reach the ballot increased from 488,722 to 611,009, due to the 2004 Presidential Election. In 2010, that number will increase again, to account for the 2008 Presidential Election.

Floridians for Smarter Growth is a statewide coalition of business and community groups united to defeat Hometown Democracy because of the devastating impact it would have on Florida's economy and quality-of-life.

To view the "Hometown Democracy" memo admitting that the 2010 petition threshold will be much higher,
click here (see page 19)