Texas Secession Petition Surpasses 100,000 Signatures

A secession petition from Texas continues to gather steam. The petition, which was filed shortly after President Obama won re-election, has more than 100,000 signatures.

The Texas secession petition has 112,309 signatures at the moment. Petitions to secede have been filed in all 50 states since President Obama has been re-elected but Texas has the most signatures by far.

With 100,000 signatures it may seem like Texas is just a few steps away from seceding from the union. That, however, isn’t likely to happen.

For one, those 112,309 signatures make up less than a percent of the total population of Texas. According to census data from 2011, Texas has a population of 25,674,681. So far, only .4% of the population has signed the petition to secede.

Governor Rick Perry has also spoken out against the idea of seceding from the union. A statement from Perry’s office reads:

“Gov. Perry believes in the greatness of our Union and nothing should be done to change it. But he also shares the frustrations many Americans have with our federal government. Now more than ever our country needs strong leadership from states like Texas, that are making tough decisions to live within their means, keep taxes low and provide opportunities to job creators so their citizens can provide for their families and prosper. We cannot allow Washington’s tax and spend, one-size-fits-all mindset to jeopardize our children’s future, undermine our personal liberties and drive our nation down a dangerous path to greater dependence of government.”

The Texas secession petition has also been slightly discredited by two other petitions from Austin and El Paso. Both Texas cities filed petitions this week urging the government to let them secede from the state.

The El Paso petition reads:

“El Paso is tired of being a second class city within Texas … El Paso has little in common with the rest of Texas. Its demographics are more similar to New Mexico. El Paso is also proud to be part of the United States and wants no part of a state whom publicly contemplates secession from our great nation.”

The Texas secession petition has gathered more than 100,000 signatures and will receive a response from the White House. But if Texas really wants to secede it will need the Governor’s support, a little more than 100,000 signatures and will have probably have to say goodbye to two of its cities.

Still, it could happen.