Atlanta, GA – The Office of the Municipal Clerk has officially approved the Cop City referendum petition, marking a pivotal milestone in the Coalition’s campaign to put the controversial issue on the November 7th ballot. The referendum seeks to overturn the city’s decision to lease land to The Atlanta Police Foundation.
Organizers now face a critical 58-day timeline to collect the necessary 75,000 signatures to secure the referendum’s place on the ballot. In order to count, each signature must come from a current resident of Atlanta who was also registered to vote in the city at the time of the last municipal election in 2021.
If organizers are unable to gather the required signatures within this 58-day window, they will still have a further two days to collect signatures and place the referendum on the subsequent March primaries ballot. However, the coalition is determined to hit their target in time for the November 7th ballot, underlining the urgency of their cause.
Over 3,000 individuals have already pledged their support to the cause, signing up to canvas for the referendum during the 14 days since the petition’s initial announcement. The first training session for these canvassing volunteers will be held tonight, kicking off the critical signature collection period.
The petition’s approval follows a period of tension during which the Cop City Vote Coalition lodged a lawsuit against the City of Atlanta. The group asserted that the city administration had been suppressing democratic processes, pointing to a failure to respect the seven-day timeline mandated by Georgia law for petition approval.
In response to the delays, Mary Hooks, a referendum organizer, stated, “The City of Atlanta is attempting to block the referendum effort and continue their ongoing pattern of silencing the voice of the people through whatever means they can find.”
While the group had initially placed blame on Mayor Andre Dickens for the delay, he deflected these claims, pointing out that the Municipal Clerk, appointed by and reporting to the City Council, operates independently of the mayor’s office.
The official text of the question that the now-approved referendum seeks to put to Atlanta’s voters is clear and direct:
Shall the City of Atlanta Ordinance 21-0-0367 authorizing the ground lease of 381 acres of forested land to the Atlanta Police Foundation for the construction of a $90 million police training facility be repealed?
Organizers and volunteers are ready to canvas the city, driven by the goal of achieving the necessary signatures for the referendum’s inclusion on the November ballot. Their efforts over the next 58 days will determine if the fate of the Cop City project will be put into the hands of the voters in Atlanta.
