CALIFORNIA -- The LA Times reported Tuesday that the state has given opponents of California's new mandatory vaccination law the green light to start collecting signatures to put the issue on the 2016 general election ballot.

The LA Times reports:

Led by former assemblyman and Republican gubernatorial candidate Tim Donnelly of Twin Peaks, the opponents must collect the signatures of 365,880 registered voters on petitions by Sept. 28 for the referendum to qualify for the ballot. A majority of voters would then have to vote yes on the referendum, in favor of the new law, during a November 2016 election, or it would not go into effect.

Governor Jerry Brown signed SB 277 into law on June 30 to take effect in mid-2016. The law eliminates the religious and personal beliefs exemptions that some parents have used to get a waiver for their children to be vaccinated.

Based on the initial reaction on social media and the number of people who have already volunteered to circulate petitions, Donnelly is confident the referendum will qualify for the 2016 ballot.

“I think the chances are as good as anything I’ve ever seen in terms of a referendum and we can do it with volunteers because there are so many motivated people who are already organized around the state,” Donnelly remarked.

He believes his group will have to raise at least $150,000 to finish the petition drive. According to Donnelly, the group has already raised $10,000.

Statewide polls suggest that a majority of California voters support the law. Opponents can postpone its implementation, however, if the referendum qualifies for the 2016 ballot until voters have had their say.

Read the full article from the LA Times here.

Photo Source: AP