The leader of the petition drive aiming to save the L.A. County cross is seeking an injunction to L.A. County Board’s decision to remove the cross as the Friday deadline approaches.

David R. Hernandez, 28th Congressional District candidate, who is leading the “Save Our Seal and Cross” campaign, was at first hoping to gather at least 170,606 valid signatures from L.A. County voters to place the issue on the November ballot. Petition gatherers had until July 9 to turn in the required number of signatures.

However, the campaign will now do two things: change the format of the petition, which a law firm said was vulnerable to challenges from opponents of the cross, and take advantage of the remaining 120-day timeframe to obtain 341,212 validated signatures that would automatically enact a countywide ordinance preventing the county from removing the cross from the official seal.

Todd Kelly of “Save Our Seal and Cross" estimates that approximately 300,000 signatures have been collected for the effort as of Thursday.

“What we are hoping is the number of signatures and the outpouring of the petitions will get the judge to grant the injunction to removing the cross until the 120 days are up,” Kelly told the Christian Post.

The L.A.County Board of Supervisors voted, 3-2, to remove the cross from the L.A. County Seal after the Americann Civil Liberties Union threatened the County with a lawsuit if the cross was not removed.

The new petition format will be posted on the campaign’s Web site, www.ourfirstamendment.org, no later than Friday, July 9.