NEW YORK – As voters across the country went to the polls in a far more significant election Tuesday, residents of three apartment buildings on the Upper West Side of New York City continued to have their referendum on Donald Trump.

The luxury buildings all say “Trump Place” on them – something a number of the residents say they cannot stomach.

So, they’ve been collecting signatures to send to the buildings’ management to remove the name of the controversial Republican presidential nominee from their home.

“Trump’s appalling treatment of women, his history of racism, his attacks on immigrants, his mockery of the disabled, his tax avoidance, his outright lying — all are antithetical to the values we and our families believe in,” says their petition at www.change.org. ”Many of the staff members of our building are minorities or immigrants; working in a building bearing his name is insulting to them.”

Thus far, the petition has collected 567 signatures, many of them from people outside the buildings that were developed by Trump in the late 1980s but are now owned by Chicago-based Equity Residential. It’s not clear how many signatures may be needed to change the name; a spokesman for the company declined comment.

One resident, Visal Mishra, said in an interview that he actually approached the buildings’ management a few days before the petition was started by Linda Gottlieb, another resident, three weeks ago.

“Most of the taxi drivers are Muslim or Hispanic,” he said, and he is tired of explaining that Trump doesn’t own the building and that his living there doesn’t indicate support for Trump from him or his family.

Mishra’s 5-year-old son used to have a fascination for Trump, even styling his hair in a combover.

But on the night that Trump won the Indiana Republican primary, Mishra said his son told him as he tucked him in, “We have to move to Canada.”

A number of those who’ve signed the petition describe Trump’s name on the buildings as an embarrassment.

“It was already tough moving into this building with his name on it before the election,” wrote Ryan Schumaker in the comments section of the online petition. “Now it’s an absolute embarrassment.”

Another apparent resident, Nathalie Rivera, wrote, “I’m a Hispanic so seeing Trump’s name ‘welcoming’ home is rather disappointing.”

But others have described the petition as silly.

“I can choose to move at any time from the Trump buildings if it is so offensive, or I can choose to write a meaningless petition,” wrote Seth Rich.

Sebastian Hargrove added, “The irony of this petition is astounding. If you don’t like or agree with the man – move. Although you won’t, as the amenities are too accommodating. The location is too convenient …

“However, I don’t think Trump has any buildings out in the Midwest, where you’re from,” he wrote

But Mishra said the area has good schools, and he doesn’t have any problems with the building — just the name on it, in huge letters.

Kery Murakami is the Washington, D.C. reporter for CNHI’s newspapers and websites. Contact him at kmurakami@cnhi.com.