Amended petition filed in battle over anti-discrimination referendum

Six Luzerne County residents trying to block a referendum to repeal the county’s anti-discrimination ordinance filed an amended petition on Wednesday, arguing nearly half the repeal advocates’ signatures are defective. The plaintiffs had sued in September, claiming about 4,000 signatures were insufficient for multiple reasons, after a three-judge panel last month questioned how the court could assess disputed signatures without a provided list. The new filing says 7,126 of 15,405 signatures collected are deficient, while 11,615 valid signatures from registered county voters are required for the referendum to reach the ballot. The amended complaint includes a 1,126-page submission with the petitions and a spreadsheet, and alleges issues such as signatures from unregistered voters, incorrect addresses, illegibility, missing information and names using initials or nicknames.