WASHINGTON — A woman who organized a petition calling on House Democrats to stop Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries from becoming speaker appears poised to take in thousands of dollars from the effort.
Nicole Whitted is a Change.org “ambassador,” which means she will make money from her signature drive that has been boosted by the likes of actor Mark Ruffalo.
The petition forum gives prospective ambassadors an estimate tool for how much money they can make off petitions. It projected that a petition with more than 200,000 signatures would earn an ambassador around $80,000, but cautioned that earnings vary.
As recently as last month, Change.org promised ambassadors a “guaranteed advance based on your audience size, plus $0.30-$0.50 for every signature” their petition garners.
The Post previously calculated that Whitted could make over $500,000 off the petition based on that claim from the Change.org website. But a spokesperson for Change.org disputed that figure while also declining to disclose how much she will actually make as an ambassador, citing company policies. The spokesperson acknowledged the website previously had inaccurate information about how much ambassadors can earn.
Change.org recently adjusted the benefits explanation on its website, claiming ambassadors get an “upfront payment, plus monthly earnings equal to 95% of what supporters chip in.”
Whitted didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Whitted’s potential windfall has not gone unnoticed, with organizers launching a separate petition demanding that she fork over the dough to fund an organized effort to replace Jeffries (D-NY) as House Democratic leader when lawmakers gather to vote Nov. 19.
“Hakeem Jeffries is simply not the right choice,” read Whitted’s petition, which was started in September. “We believe the Speaker should represent the Democratic voters, not just the Democratic establishment.”
“We are calling on every member of the incoming 120th Congress to vote against Hakeem Jeffries for Speaker in January 2027 and choose a different candidate.”
Despite Whitted’s efforts, Jeffries, 56, is the overwhelming favorite to be chosen as the first black House Speaker in US history after the new Congress convenes Jan. 3.
