Signature problems sink Pittsburgh referendum question on doing business with Israel

A proposed ballot question by a pro-Palestinian group that sought to stop the City of Pittsburgh from doing business with companies that have ties to Israel will not move forward.

The issue was scheduled for a hearing Monday morning in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court.

But according to an order in the case, both sides agreed that the pro-Palestinian group, No War Crimes on Our Dime, conceded that it did not collect the necessary number of qualified signatures to get the referendum on the ballot for November’s general election.

While petitions to add the referendum to the ballot included 15,253 signatures, challengers alleged that more than 10,000 of those needed to be stricken based on a variety of factors — including that the signers lived outside of the city of Pittsburgh, weren’t registered to vote in Pittsburgh or didn’t act within the time limit required.

Under the law, the group needed to submit signatures from 10% of the number of people voting for governor in the last general election in Pittsburgh. In this case, 12,495 signatures were needed.

The Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh, as well as the Pittsburgh controller’s office, challenged the referendum petitions. In addition to alleging that they did not meet the standards for required signatures, the opponents charged that the proposed ballot question was antisemitic and potentially catastrophic for how the city does business because of the number of Israeli entities linked to Pittsburgh contracts.

Jeff Finkelstein, the executive director of the federation, said on Monday after the court proceeding concluded, “We won.”

“And whatever the other side says and tries to position it, we won on the legal basis that our lawyers had laid out.”

The other side, who held a news conference later on Monday, said they believe a majority of Pittsburghers do not want their tax dollars going to fund the war in Gaza.

“The idea was getting the spirit of this onto the ballot to let the voters decide,” said Ben Case, with No War Crimes on Our Dime. “It’s about that principle, and we believe there’s a way to do that responsibly.”

Case said that he did not believe that the impact of the referendum would have been as catastrophic as opponents argued, and had the question been approved, it would have required legislation by the city to implement.

The referendum, submitted to the county Department of Elections on Aug. 6, sought to amend Pittsburgh’s home rule charter and prohibit the city from doing business with anyone with ties to Israel until the war in Gaza concludes.

However, opponents said that the broadly worded question would have seriously hampered the city’s abilities to provide essential services to its residents.

Examples cited by Controller Rachael Heisler included medications used by Emergency Medical Services, protective equipment used by first responders and even electricity.

Duquesne Light provides electricity to the majority of the city, but the utility is also part of a consortium with Israeli groups that received a grant from the Department of Energy for energy infrastructure cybersecurity.

City vehicles rely on gas from companies with holdings in Israel, objectors said, and medications used by EMS are sourced by Israeli pharmaceutical companies.

Although the referendum won’t make it onto the ballot, challengers also objected based on state law.

Pennsylvania, in 2016, passed an anti-boycott, divestment and sanctions act, which makes it illegal for any company contracted by the state to discriminate against Israel or others doing business there.

Finkelstein said he was disappointed that argument wasn’t heard in the case.

“We are worried about what the future could bring, because we’ve seen this hatred out there for many years,” he said.

The federation is also seeking to recover attorneys’ fees from the Pittsburgh Democratic Socialists of America, which sponsored the referendum question.

Addy Lord, a former staffer for City Councilwoman Barb Warwick, was one of the organizers on the referendum petitions and submitted them to Allegheny County’s elections division.

The question, she said, was meant as a response to local politicians who refuse to fight for a lasting ceasefire in the war.

“We employed the democratic levers at our disposal, and one of the very few that we people have here in Pittsburgh is a ballot referendum to amend our home rule charter,” Lord said.

Elyanna Sharbaji, who is Syrian American, said it was a way of giving power back to the people.

“We know without a doubt that if this question had made it to the ballot, we would have won. The people support a ceasefire. They demand an end for the funding of genocide,” Sharbaji said. “Today, we’re not giving up. We are regrouping, restrategizing and preparing to return even stronger. This past month has proved to us that the people are with us.”