Can the humble petition stop Trump’s visit?
The number of signatures on e-petitions calling for the cancellation of Donald Trump’s state visit invitation continues to increase.
Over 100,000 people have now signed a Stop Trump Coalition petition calling for Trump’s state visit to be cancelled. A separate 38 Degrees petition is close to reaching 200,000 signatures.
The offer of a second state visit makes Trump the first elected political leader in modern history to be hosted for two state visits by a British monarch.
During a meeting with Trump at the White House last Thursday, Prime Minister Keir Starmer handed him a letter from King Charles III inviting him for a state visit to the UK.
In the past week alone, Trump has sparked widespread outrage and condemnation calling President Volodymyr Zelenskyy “ungrateful” for US’ military aid.
On Monday, Trump made a shock announcement pausing military aid to Ukraine following his disastrous meeting with Zelenskyy last Friday.
No date for Trump’s second state visit has been set yet.
The 38 Degrees petition says “a huge petition signed by hundreds of thousands of us will show Trump, The King and the PM how unwelcome the US president truly is. It’s the first step in stopping this terrible idea.”
In a recent opinion piece, the Guardian’s Zoe Williams questions the effectiveness of protests and petitions in blocking Trump’s visit, saying: “there is no imaginable world in which King Charles pays attention to an e-petition”.
However, the increasing number of signatures highlights the public’s strong opposition to Trump.
A YouGov poll from January revealed that 58% of the British public dislike Trump. On the issue of his state visit, a YouGov poll found that 42% believe it should be cancelled, 43% think it should go ahead, and 15% are unsure.
Olivia Barber is a reporter at Left Foot Forward
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