(The Center Square) – The Federal Bureau of Investigation has notified Let’s Go Washington that Antifa-affiliated individuals and groups are calling for acts of violence and intimidation against volunteers and supporters during a signature gathering event in Tumwater this Saturday.
LGW is gathering signatures for two initiatives: one to ban transgender girls/women from female sports and another to establish a strong parents’ bill of rights regarding education.
Spokesperson Hallie Balch told The Center Square that LGW was contacted by the Tumwater Police Department after the FBI notified the department of the threats.
“The FBI let them know that they had received information that Antifa would be coming, and they’ve been promoting violent acts against our rally and people that’ll be there,” she said. “They’re planning to come out and cause a ruckus essentially, so Tumwater PD told us that they have it on their radar, and they’ll be in the area, but they said we should also look into getting our own security measures.”
According to Balch, LGW brought its own security teams to every signing event following dozens of attacks on signature gatherers outside storefronts and at previous rallies in recent months.
“We just added a few more people to that list,” she said.
LGW leadership is determined to continue gathering signatures.
“Antifa’s goal is to threaten and intimidate Washington citizens into silence,” LGW founder Brian Heywood said in a Friday news release. “It won’t work. We have already endured unprecedented political violence throughout this campaign – including more than 50 documented physical assaults and even a hit-and-run by a thief trying to make off with stolen signatures – yet Washingtonians continue to stand up for fairness in girls’ sports, the restoration of parental rights, and common-sense reforms.”
Balch said the police did not provide details on how the FBI discovered the threats.
“But they did say that they’ve never had the FBI call on behalf of Let’s Go Washington because of one of our events, so that tells us that it must be serious,” she said.
As reported by TCS, LGW released new signature count totals for both initiatives this week.
As of Tuesday, LGW had collected 315,979 signatures for IL26-638 to protect girls in sports, and 298,571 signatures for IL26-001 to restore the parental rights initiative.
Approximately 309,000 valid voter signatures are required by 5 p.m. on Jan. 2, 2026, to have each measure certified by the Office of the Secretary of State. That number is based on the percentage of registered voters who participated in the last general election.
“We will not be silenced by intimidation or even violence,” Heywood said in the news release. “Girls deserve fairness in sports, and parents have a right to know what’s going on in their child’s classroom. We are proud to continue fighting for those rights.”
