Like a merry-go-round ride at the county fair, anti-hunting animal rights activists in Oregon are expected to hop back on board for another round-and-round cycle of signature gathering. Their goal remains to qualify a ballot measure that would ban hunting, fishing, raising animals for food, rodeos, animal husbandry and many other commonly accepted practices.

They tried in 2022 but only collected 1,000 to 2,000 signatures. They tried again in 2024 when they collected about 40,000 signatures. For the 2026 election season, proponents submitted142,784 signatures under the guise of “prevent animal cruelty” by the July 2 deadline. Three weeks later, the Oregon Secretary of State declared only 73 percent of the signatures were valid, leaving proponents with a total of 104,262 or 12,911 short. In other words, the state rejected 27 percent of the gathered signatures.

Defeat does not stop animal rights extremists. In fact, on the same day of the secretary of state’s announcement, Initiative Petition 28 chief petitioner David Michelson (see photo below) sent a note to his supporters referring to his team’s defeat as a “milestone.” He continued, “If our campaign continues to grow as it has, I am confident we can get this initiative on the ballot in the future.”

Those comments are in line with others he made on past podcasts, self-produced videos and in written articles. And succeeding in Oregon is anything but Michelson’s ultimate goal.

Past Michelson quotes

“Our goal is to create a base that can do this in Oregon in multiple election cycles in a row, that can do this in other states. So that in decades — it took the women’s suffrage movement 40 to 50 years from the first ballot initiative to getting the Nineteenth Amendment — so it’s a long game.”

“If we’re able to get on the ballot and if we’re able to form an organization that gets it on the ballot in multiple election cycles – 2028, 2030, 2032, 2034 – that can hopefully stimulate a lot more grassroots mass protests who are calling for a state amendment in their state and potentially a federal constitutional amendment.”

“If Oregon is the first state, which could be the next? Colorado and California might be top contenders—although Arizona and Florida may prove as formidable contenders given they each allow for two years of signature collection (similar to Oregon) and their warmer winters and longer days are ideal for petitioning.”

“Since the United States is unique in that many localities allow citizens to circulate a petition to initiate a binding public vote on changes to city, county, and state  law—bypassing their local and state legislatures—animal advocates in the U.S. have an opportunity to force a vote.”

Those final words are telling: “force a vote.” These extremists want what they want, including forcing consequences on others. If eventually passed, their ideology would:

• Make hunting, fishing and trapping a crime

• End proven wildlife management as spelled out in the North American Wildlife Conservation Model and its front-line management tools of hunting, fishing and trapping

• Severely harm conservation and the ability of state wildlife agencies to protect and enhance fish and wildlife and their habitats

• Cut funding for state wildlife agency budgets, which rely on dollars generated from hunting and fishing licenses and fees used to manage all wildlife, not just hunted species

• Negate millions of dollars used for conservation, recreation and public access projects generated by excise taxes on guns, ammunition, archery equipment and fishing gear via the Pittman-Robertson and Dingell-Johnson Acts

• Drastically impact fish populations since the millions spent on fisheries and fish hatcheries would be cut off

• Threaten the food security of Americans by making it against the law for farmers and ranchers to raise cattle, hogs, sheep and goats, poultry and fish for food

• Destroy livelihoods of family farms by ending livestock ranching and transition those farms and ranches into “animal sanctuaries”

• Permanently end commercial operations that provide meat, milk, cheese, eggs and other products

• Severely disable or permanently close the commercial fishing industry

• Threaten the food security of Americans by making it illegal for hunters and anglers to acquire their own meat

• Frustrate restaurants and food service businesses, homeowners and pet owners, private property rights, recreational and working animal industries, and coastal communities and Tribal nations that rely on hunting and fishing operations

• Outlaw animal research and education

• End common pest control, including trapping mice and vermin

• Redefine common breeding practices for dogs, cats, horses and cattle

• Significantly harm or reduce youth programs such as 4-H and Future Farmers of America

For activists, their latest short-term effort failed. Again. However, their long-term or “long-game” aspirations are more than alive. And that makes them dangerous today and tomorrow. 

About Hunt 2 Conserve

Hunt 2 Conserve is a 501(c)4 nonprofit organization affiliated with the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. Its mission is to advance a legacy of hunting and conservation by educating, activating and developing stewards and defenders of these fundamentally American ideals. For more information, go to hunt2conserve.org.