Legislative Form

What are petition forms?

Petition forms are documents that organizations, groups, or individuals use to collect signatures and comments in support of a cause or request. Petitions provide a formal way to gather signatures from people who share a common concern or interest, and they are typically the bedrock of grassroots activism, advocacy, and civic engagement.

Petition forms include a concise statement detailing the issue at hand and outlining the goals and demands of those signing the petition. Once a petition has collected the number of signatures it needs, it is delivered to an organization of decision-makers (usually a government body or company). Additionally, petitions may request contact information from signatories to keep them informed about the status of the petition or related activities.

In this day and age, many petitions are created and signed using online platforms, which makes the signature collection and sharing process much more efficient.

When are petition forms needed?

Petition forms are used to demonstrate public support of or opposition to a specific program, action, or change. They are democratic tools that allow individuals and communities to advocate for issues they care about and detail their concerns, making them an important part of public discourse. As such, concerned members of the public can use petitions any time an organization or government body proposes a new initiative, law, or program that they don’t agree with. They are also used to advocate for specific changes to initiatives, laws, or programs that are already in place.

What are the benefits of using petition forms?

Petition forms are extremely useful for groups that are seeking change, raising awareness, or attempting to influence decision-makers. They create visibility for specific issues or causes in the media and on social media platforms, which can inspire widespread change by mobilizing groups of people.

When petitions receive a lot of attention and many signatures, they can put pressure on decision-makers to make the requested change. This is done, in part, with data collected from the petition, calls for accountability, and other advocacy strategies like lobbying, organizing, and public demonstrations.

Online petition platforms are particularly useful because they make it easy to reach a wide audience quickly. Many online petitions go viral and call for signatures from people around the world, which increases their overall impact. Once a petition is complete, it provides a record of public opinion about issues, which helps track changes in public sentiment.

What are some common uses of petition forms?

Petitions are used for political issues, social causes, policy changes, and much more. Petitions are most commonly used to advocate for social justice and civil rights issues, such as LGBTQ+ rights, racial justice, gender equality, etc. They’re also used in political campaigns, environmental conservation, consumer advocacy, humanitarian causes, and community development projects. Petitions also are a great way for union members in fields like education and healthcare to advocate for change.

What are the subtypes of petition forms?

Petition forms can be filled out online or on paper. Once you’ve decided which of these options you want to use, you can make a petition form to generate support for any issue or cause.

How do I create a petition form?

You can create a petition form easily with Jotform. Simply choose a petition form from our template library and customize it in our intuitive drag-and-drop form builder — or build your own from scratch! Personalize it by rearranging form fields, changing fonts and colors, adding your own logos and images, and much more. Once it looks good to go, you can share it via social media, through email, with a link, or in a QR code, or by embedding it in your website. Then watch as your petition’s impact expands by the day.