An online petition urging Vermont lawmakers to make Republican Scott Milne governor had 3,137 signatures as of noon Tuesday.
Because no candidate for governor received a majority of votes in last week’s election, lawmakers will vote by secret ballot in January to decide who will lead the state for the next two years.
The petition argues that the “voting constituency in Vermont has clearly stated that it is time for change in the state’s highest office.”
Supporters argue that because more than half of voters cast ballots for a “conservative” candidate, the Legislature should reject Democratic Gov. Peter Shumlin and vote for Milne.
However, Milne didn’t receive a majority of votes, either, and his positions differed greatly from fellow “conservative” Libertarian candidate Dan Feliciano.
Milne received 2,400 fewer votes than Shumlin, and historically when the Legislature must decide, the top vote-getter is elected.
The petition is circulating on Moveon.org, a liberal/progressive platform for petitions and advocates to seek backing for campaigns.
But in emails obtained by VTDigger, a Moveon support volunteer explains that any petition “regardless of whether it fits with our organizational goals and mission” can be circulated on the site.
A petition that receive 15 signatures is typically sent out to 1,000 Moveon.org members. If it continues to receive signatures, then the petition will be sent to more members.
“This way, MoveOn members can weigh in on whether they think we should continue to support a petition, and whether other MoveOn members would want to see it,” the support volunteer wrote.
Most signees are from Vermont, but there are also many from out-of-state and abroad, with at least one person signing on from Rome.
The comments and the petition reflect the deep voter dissatisfaction with Shumlin that almost saw him swept out of office.