Arthur Czyszczon recall, Treasure Island, Florida (2026)
| Arthur Czyszczon recall |
|---|
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| Officeholders |
| Recall status |
| Recall election date |
| April 21, 2026 |
| Signature requirement |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2026 Recalls in Florida Florida recall laws City council recalls Recall reports |
An election to recall District 3 City Commissioner Arthur Czyszczon is scheduled for April 21, 2026, in Treasure Island, Florida.[1] The effort to recall Czyszczon began after he sent sexually suggestive texts to a consitutent using a a city-issued phone, which recall organizers believed qualified as grounds for recall under Florida law.[2]
Recall vote
Arthur Czyszczon recall, 2026
Arthur Czyszczon is facing a recall election in the Treasure Island City Commissioner Board District 3 recall on April 21, 2026.
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Recall supporters
Organizers initiated the recall effort against Czyszczon after he sent sexually suggestive texts from a city-issued phone to constituent Rick Matthew, which included comments about washing Matthew's feet and kissing him and his wife. The messages were read aloud at a city meeting, which led to a petition seeking Czyszczon's removal for alleged misfeasance. According to 10 Tampa Bay News, misfeasance is defined by Florida law as "a lawful act done in an unlawful manner."[2]
Recall opponents
J.C. Planas, a lawyer representing Czyszczon, said to 10 Tampa Bay News, "It's an accidental text, that's it. If he had grabbed his regular phone and texted, it would not have been misfeasance."[2] Czyszczon filed a lawsuit against Matthew, Treasure Island City Clerk Lisa-Marie Kennedy, and the Pinellas County Supervisor of Elections to stop the recall from moving forward, but a district court judge ruled that the recall petition was legally sufficient.[2]
Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in Florida
Florida allows the following grounds for recall: malfeasance, misfeasance, neglect of duty, drunkenness, incompetence, permanent inability to perform official duties, and conviction of a felony involving moral turpitude.[3]
From the time that the recall petition is approved for circulation, signatures must be collected within 30 days. The number of signatures required depends on the number of registered voters in the jurisdiction. A minimum of 50 signatures are required in jurisdictions with fewer than 500 registered voters. In jurisdictions with 500 to 24,999 registered voters, a minimum of 100 to 1,000 signatures are required, or 10% of registered voters, whichever is higher. In jurisdictions with 25,000 or more registered voters, the number of signatures required is 1,000 or 5% of registered voters, whichever is higher.[4] The officeholder then has a chance to file a defensive statement. In the second round of signature collection, organizers have 60 days to collect signatures equal to 15% of registered voters from the officeholder's district.[4]
Recall context
- See also: Ballotpedia's Recall Report
Ballotpedia covers recall efforts across the country for all state and local elected offices. A recall effort is considered official if the petitioning party has filed an official form, such as a notice of intent to recall, with the relevant election agency.
The chart below shows how many officials were included in recall efforts from 2012 to 2025 as well as how many of them defeated recall elections to stay in office and how many were removed from office in recall elections.
See also
- Ballotpedia's Recall Report
- Treasure Island, Florida
- Recall campaigns in Florida
- Political recall efforts, 2026
- City council recalls
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Treasure Island, Florida, "April 21 Recall Election Information," March 3, 2026
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 10 Tampa Bay News, "Treasure Island commissioner is recalled after petitions verified," February 17, 2026
- ↑ The 2023 Florida Statutes, "100.361 Municipal recall." accessed October 16, 2023
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 The 2020 Florida Statutes, "Fla. Stat. Ann §100.361," accessed August 24, 2021
