Ballotpedia's Mid-Year Recall Report (2020)
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Mid-year report |
98 separate recall efforts |
Snohomish County, Washington Las Vegas, Nevada Miami, Florida El Rancho Unified School District, California |
June 22, 2020 (updated September 17, 2024)
By Ballotpedia staff
Ballotpedia’s coverage of recalls in the first half of 2020 showed a rise in attempts compared to the same period in 2019, but the numbers fell short of the efforts made by the midway points in 2018, 2017, and 2016. As of this report's publication, Ballotpedia had covered 98 recall efforts against 121 officials, compared to 72 efforts against 115 officials at this point in 2019. By comparison, the first half of 2016 saw 189 recall efforts against 265 officials.
As in previous years, California led the field with the most officials targeted for recall during the first half of 2020. Thirty-three officials were targeted in California, followed by 11 in Michigan and nine in Colorado. When the figures were adjusted for state population, however, North Dakota emerged as the recall leader with 0.66 recalls per 100,000 residents.
Of the recall efforts covered during this time period, 36% remained underway as of this report's publication, and another 8% had elections scheduled in the future. Conversely, 33% of the efforts did not reach the ballot. Another 10% of the recall efforts reached the ballot and were approved earlier in the year, 11% reached the ballot but were defeated, and 2% ended when the targeted official voluntarily resigned.
Notable recalls across the first half of 2020 included the following:
- In Alaska, Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R) faced a recall that was still underway at the time of this report. Recall supporters criticized Dunleavy over several topics, which included the use of state funds, vetoes, and a late judicial appointment. After Attorney General Kevin Clarkson (R) rejected the recall petition against Dunleavy, recall supporters filed suit and the litigation went all the way to the Alaska Supreme Court, which held that the recall effort could proceed.
- In Snohomish County, Washington, Sheriff Adam Fortney faced two recall efforts after he announced in April 2020 that his office would not enforce restrictions Gov. Jay Inslee (D) instituted in response to the coronavirus pandemic. At the time of this report, both efforts were approved to circulate petitions.
- In Las Vegas, Nevada, petitioners sought to recall Mayor Carolyn Goodman due to comments she made during an appearance on CNN about reopening Las Vegas in order to use it as a control group during the coronavirus pandemic. To move the recall forward, petitioners needed to submit 6,745 signatures by August 7, 2020.
- In Miami, Florida, District 3 Commissioner Joe Carollo faced a recall for alleged abuse of power and violations of the Miami city charter. At the time of this report, the recall effort was still active. Miami's city clerk rejected the petitions after determining the petitioners missed the 30-day submission deadline, but a court subsequently ruled that the clerk must turn over the petitions to the county elections department for verification. The city was expected to pursue further litigation.
- In the El Rancho Unified School District in California, voters approved the recall of school board members Jose Lara and Leanne Ibarra on June 2, 2020. Recall petitioners listed a number of concerns with Ibarra and Lara, including several votes they had cast and alleged mismanagement of bond money.
Statistics
From January 1, 2020, through June 22, 2020, Ballotpedia covered a total of 98 recall efforts against 121 officials. Efforts against 47 of those officials remain ongoing. Recall attempts targeting 43 officials did not make it to the ballot and are marked as Unsuccessful on the chart. Of the 27 officials whose recalls made it to the ballot, 13 were recalled and 14 survived the attempt. Two other officials resigned before their recalls could go to a vote, and another official's recall was handled by judicial proceedings. A breakdown of the various recall outcomes is displayed in the chart below.
Though 121 officials had recalls started against them, some were the focus of multiple recall efforts. Those additional efforts were added to the chart below to detail the different statuses. Because of that, the total is 130 rather than 121.
City council officials drew more recall petitions than any other group in the first half of 2020. A total of 43 city council members faced recall campaigns, while school board members faced the second-most with 23. Recalls were also sought for 15 mayors. In state government, there were four state legislators and 12 state executives who faced recall efforts. A breakdown of the various recall targets is displayed in the chart below:
Targets by state
California led the way in officials targeted for recall with 33 through June 17, 2020. Michigan and Colorado followed with 11 and nine officials facing recall respectively. To view the number of recalls in a particular state, hover your mouse cursor over that state below:
When adjusted for state population using the U.S. Census Bureau's July 2019 population estimates, North Dakota emerges as the recall leader with 0.66 recalls per 100,000 residents. It is followed by Alaska (0.41 recalls per 100,000 residents) and Idaho (0.39 recalls per 100,000 residents).
Notable recalls
Mike Dunleavy recall, Governor of Alaska
An effort in Alaska to recall Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R) was initiated in July 2019. The recall campaign had to initially submit 28,501 signatures to request a recall petition from the Division of Elections; it submitted 49,006 signatures on September 4, 2019.[1][2]
Recall supporters have criticized Dunleavy over four specific actions, including: authorizing state funds to be used for partisan advertisements, failing to appoint a judge to the Palmer Superior Court within the required statutory timeframe, violating separation-of-powers by improperly using the line-item veto, and accounting errors in budget vetoes, which the recall effort alleges would have cost the state millions in Medicare funding.[3][4]
In November 2019, Attorney General Kevin Clarkson (R) determined that the recall failed to meet any of the grounds for recall.[5] The state Division of Elections rejected the recall petition citing Clarkson’s legal opinion. The Recall Dunleavy group appealed Clarkson’s decision, and in January 2020, Anchorage Superior Court Judge Eric Aarseth rejected Clarkson’s ruling. The state appealed Aarseth’s ruling to the Alaska Supreme Court. The supreme court on May 8, 2020, affirmed the superior court ruling that the recall effort against Dunleavy could proceed.[6][7][8][9]
Supporters will need to gather 71,252 signatures to get the recall on the ballot. According to Alaska recall law, if a vote to recall Dunleavy is approved, Lt. Gov. Kevin Meyer (R) would become governor. As of June 2020, the Recall Dunleavy website said the group had collected 37,550 signatures.[10] Due to coronavirus concerns, the recall campaign began to collect signatures by mail on March 20, 2020.[11]
Recall supporters have up to 180 days prior to the term end date of the state official being considered for recall to turn in the necessary signatures to the Division of Elections. The last day for supporters to turn in signatures for the Dunleavy recall was June 8, 2022. Recall Dunleavy campaign manager Claire Pywell said that she believes that the effort must gather the necessary signatures before July 3 to make the November general election ballot in 2020. If the effort cannot make the November ballot, then a special election will be called for the recall.[12]
Adam Fortney recall, Snohomish County, Washington
Two efforts to recall Adam Fortney from his position as sheriff of Snohomish County, Washington, have been approved to circulate petitions. The efforts began after Fortney announced on Facebook in April 2020 that his office would not enforce restrictions Gov. Jay Inslee (D) set in place in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The first recall petition said that Fortney "used his position as an elected official to encourage citizens to defy the law and violate the Governor’s Emergency Proclamations." The second recall petition said that Fortney had violated his oath of office. Members of that recall effort also cited Fortney's handling of the county jail during the coronavirus pandemic and his decision to reinstate deputies who had been fired by a previous sheriff as reasons for recall.[13]
The first recall petition was approved for circulation on May 15, 2020, and the second was approved for circulation on June 2, 2020.[14][15] The two recall efforts had acted independently of each other as of June 13, 2020.[16] Recall supporters must collect 44,494 signatures in six months to get the recall on the ballot.[13]
In response to the recall efforts, Fortney said he stood by his statement that the sheriff's department "will not be enforcing an order preventing religious freedoms or constitutional rights."[13] He filed a motion for the court to reconsider the decision approving the recall petition for circulation, but the motion was rejected on June 12, 2020. He had 15 days to appeal to the Washington Supreme Court.[16]
Fortney was elected sheriff on November 5, 2019, with 55% of the vote.[17]
Carolyn Goodman recall, Las Vegas, Nevada
An effort in Las Vegas, Nevada, to recall Mayor Carolyn Goodman is underway. Recall organizers submitted a notice of intent to recall on May 6, 2020. Petitioners have until August 4, 2020, to submit 6,745 valid signatures for the recall to move forward.[18]
The notice of intent was filed by Doug Polk after Goodman appeared on CNN to make the case that Las Vegas should be allowed to begin reopening during the coronavirus pandemic. Goodman said the city could be used as a control group for opening up a city after a shutdown.[18]
Polk accused Goodman of failing to represent her constituency in a statement given after the petitions were filed. He said the recall effort was started over "her clear disregard for public health, but also in her support for the casino owners over the people of Las Vegas. Additionally, she is barely able to speak coherent sentences while discussing the subject matter. She is unfit to serve as the mayor of Las Vegas."[18]
Goodman responded to the recall effort. She said, "You know, this is America. That’s his choice. Everybody’s entitled to their own political opinions."[18]
Goodman was first elected as mayor in 2011, succeeding her husband, Oscar B. Goodman, who had served the maximum of three terms in office. She last won re-election in 2019, winning the election outright in the primary with 83.5% of the vote.
Joe Carollo recall, Miami, Florida
An effort in Miami, Florida, to recall Miami Board of Commissioners District 3 Commissioner Joe Carollo was initiated in January 2020.[19] Supporters of the recall effort accused Carollo of abuse of power and violations of the Miami city charter.[20] Opponents stated that the recall effort was politically motivated and the petition's allegations were false.[19]
Under Florida law, petitioners are required to undertake two rounds of signature gathering. In the first round, petitioners must obtain signatures from 5% of the registered voters within the targeted official's district. The signatures must be collected and submitted to the city clerk within 30 days of the first signature being collected on the petition.[21] In this case, petitioners digitally submitted the first round of petitions on February 29, 2020, and physically submitted them on March 2. The clerk’s office rejected the petitions on the grounds that petitioners missed the submission deadline; the clerk determined the deadline to physically submit the petitions was March 1.[22] Petitioners subsequently sued to compel the city clerk to turn over the signatures to the Miami-Dade elections department for verification. They argued that the clerk did not have the legal authority to make a decision about the petition's timeliness.[23]
A Miami-Dade Circuit Court judge held that the law required the city clerk to turn over the petitions to the county elections department. The city appealed and on May 27, a three-judge panel of the Third District Court of Appeals affirmed the circuit court's ruling, holding that Florida state law does not grant a city clerk authority to determine a recall petition's legal sufficiency. Further litigation on the petition's validity is expected.[24]
The recall effort is led by the political committee Take Back Our City, headed by District 3 citizen Rob Piper.[19] Former Miami City Manager Joe Arriola, former Miami Mayor Manny Diaz, and former Miami-Dade County Commission Chair Bruno Barreiro also publicly backed the recall. The recall petition is based on allegations of malfeasance, abuse of power, and violations of state law by Carollo.[20]
Carollo responded to the petition, stating its allegations are false and that the recall effort is headed by a group of political operatives who do not reside within District 3.[19] In statements to local media outlets, Carollo also said the petition was organized by a group "comprised of socialist radicals, as well as others that want to do business with the Cuban dictatorship and corrupt politicians that want to be relevant again."[25]
El Rancho Unified School District recall, California
A recall election seeking to remove Leanne Ibarra and Jose Lara from their positions on the El Rancho Unified School District Board of Education in California was approved by voters on June 2, 2020. The election was conducted by all mail-in ballot in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Joseph Rivera was elected to replace Lara, and Esther Mejia was elected to replace Ibarra.[26][27][28][29]
Lara resigned from his seat effective February 5, 2020. At a school board meeting on January 21, 2020, Lara said he was leaving in order to focus on his family while his son recuperated from an illness.[30][31] His name was still on the recall election ballot. If a majority of voters had cast ballots to retain him, the school board would have appointed his replacement.[32]
The recall effort began in May 2019. Recall supporters listed a number of concerns with the board, including a vote to notify 23 administrators they could be fired or reassigned, a vote to demote, transfer, and release six administrators, and the alleged mismanagement of a $200 million bond.[13][14][33] To get the recall on the ballot, recall supporters had to collect at least 6,509 signatures by October 23, 2019.[14]
Lara and Ibarra said the recall supporters were out of touch with what was going on in the district. They both said they stood by their records.[14] In an interview with the Whittier Daily News, Lara said, "The community of Pico Rivera has been driven along a misinformation campaign. They've only heard one side of the story."[30]
Lara was first elected to the five-member board on November 5, 2013, and Ibarra was first elected on November 6, 2018.[34][35] Before Lara resigned, Lara and Ibarra were members of a three-person majority on the board, according to the Whittier Daily News. The third member of the majority, Gabriel Orosco, was not included in the recall effort as his term was up for election in 2020. The two other members of the board supported the recall.[14]
See also
- Recall overview
- Political recall efforts
- Political recall efforts, 2020
- Laws governing recall
- Ballotpedia's Mid-Year Recall Report (2019)
- Ballotpedia's 2019 Recall Analysis
Footnotes
- ↑ KTOO, "Group submits signatures in early phase of recall effort," September 5, 2019
- ↑ Anchorage Daily News, "Campaign launches to recall Gov. Dunleavy," July 30, 2019
- ↑ Alaska Public Media, "Campaign to recall Gov. Dunleavy set to start August 1," July 31, 2019
- ↑ Recall Dunleavy, "Petition Language," accessed July 31, 2019
- ↑ In Alaska, a recall petition has to meet one of the following grounds to make the ballot: lack of fitness, incompetence, neglect of duties, or corruption.
- ↑ Must Read Alaska, "‘The fight’s on,’ as Dunleavy recall gets national attention," October 13, 2019
- ↑ Anchorage Daily News, "Rejected by state officials, backers of recall campaign against Gov. Dunleavy take their case to court," November 5, 2019
- ↑ Anchorage Daily News, "Superior Court judge allows recall campaign against Gov. Mike Dunleavy to proceed," January 10, 2020
- ↑ Anchorage Daily News, "Gov. Dunleavy recall effort can proceed, Alaska Supreme Court rules," May 9, 2020
- ↑ Recall Dunleavy, "Main page," accessed June 17, 2020
- ↑ KUCB, "In Response To Coronavirus, Recall Dunleavy Campaign Moves To Alaskan Mailboxes," March 23, 2020
- ↑ Anchorage Daily News, "Gov. Dunleavy recall effort can proceed, Alaska Supreme Court rules," May 9, 2020
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 My Edmond News, "Snohomish County Sheriff faces recall campaign after judge says that signature gathering can begin," May 18, 2020 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "began" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 Union-Bulletin, "Local judge rules COVID-related sheriff's recall petition can proceed," May 20, 2020
- ↑ Herald Net, "Judge approves 2nd recall effort against Sheriff Fortney," June 2, 2020
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 My Edmond News, "Judge rejects Snohomish County Sheriff’s motion to reconsider recall petition ruling," June 13, 2020
- ↑ Snohomish County Elections, "Summary Report: Snohomish County, 2019 General, Nov 05, 2019," accessed May 26, 2020
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 18.3 Las Vegas Review-Journal, "Las Vegas mayor faces recall effort over coronavirus response," May 6, 2020
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 19.3 Miami Herald, "Activists officially launch petition to recall Miami Commissioner Joe Carollo," January 30, 2020
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 Take Back Our City, "Petition for municipal recall of Joe Carollo City Commission of Miami, Florida," accessed March 6, 2020
- ↑ Florida Legislature, "Fla. Stat. Ann §100.361," accessed June 4, 2020
- ↑ Miami Herald, "City rejects petitions in Carollo recall campaign because they were late. Cue lawsuit." March 2, 2020
- ↑ Miami Herald, "They want to recall Joe Carollo. City said the petitions were late. Now they’re suing." March 3, 2020
- ↑ Miami Herald, "Carollo loses court appeal involving recall effort against him. Expect more lawsuits." May 27, 2020
- ↑ WPLG Local 10 News, "Recall effort of Miami City Commissioner Joe Carollo begins ‘in earnest,’ organizers say," February 11, 2020
- ↑ Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Calendar of Events: EL RANCHO USD SPECIAL RECALL ELECTION," accessed February 18, 2020
- ↑ Whittier Daily News, "El Rancho’s June recall election will use all mail-in ballots due to coronavirus," April 10, 2020
- ↑ Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Special Elections: FINAL LIST OF QUALIFIED CANDIDATES TO APPEAR ON THE BALLOT," accessed March 30, 2020
- ↑ Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Special Elections June 2, 2020," accessed June 4, 2020
- ↑ 30.0 30.1 Whittier Daily News, "Recall election coming to El Rancho Unified," December 6, 2019
- ↑ San Gabriel Valley Tribune, "Jose Lara to resign from El Rancho Unifed school board," January 21, 2020
- ↑ Whittier Daily News, "Ballots are in the mail for El Rancho Unified’s June recall election," May 7, 2020
- ↑ Hews Media Group-Los Cerritos Community News, "FPPC to Investigate El Rancho Unified Political Action Committee That Supported Measure ER Bond," May 24, 2019
- ↑ El Rancho Unified School District, "Board of Education Members," accessed May 30, 2019
- ↑ Union del Barrio, "Unión del Barrio Backed Slate Wins Two School Board Seats in Pico Rivera," November 8, 2018
