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City council recall, Baxter Springs, Kansas (2012)
| Baxter Springs Mayor and City Council recall |
|---|
 |
| Officeholders |
Ron Costlow Ed McAfee |
| Recall status |
Recall defeated Did not go to a vote |
| Recall election date |
| November 6, 2012 |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2012 Recalls in Kansas Kansas recall laws City council recalls Recall reports |
A vote about whether to recall three members of the Baxter Springs, Kansas city council took place on November 6, 2012.[1] The three officials facing recall were Gary Allen, Ron Costlow, and Ed McAfee. Costlow was recalled while Allen and McAfee were retained.[2] The recall effort was launched in June 2012.[3] A petition aimed at recalling Baxter Spring Mayor Jenifer Bingham was rejected in late June 2012.[4] City council member Robert St. Clair was also targeted for recall, but the recall petition against him was deemed invalid.[1]
Reasons for recall
The four recall targets were at odds with Baxter Springs Mayor Jenifer Bingham, and supporters of the mayor circulated recall petitions. The petitions allegde that the recall targets violated Kansas open meetings laws. Cathy Bolek was an organizer of the recall campaign. Bolek said citizens were also upset because six members of the council hired an attorney, with taxpayer money, whose fee is a minimum of $5,000 for up to 25 hours of work and $175 per hour for each additional hour.[3]
Path to the ballot
Petitions against Allen and Costlow were approved for circulation on June 15, while petitions against McAfee and St. Clair were approved for circulation on June 19. Recall organizers had 90 days to submit signatures. 112 signatures were required for Allen, 58 for St. Clair, 57 for Costlow, and 34 for McAfee. Those numbers represent 40% of the ballots cast in the most recent election in which the council members were elected.[3] On August 6, signatures were submitted on Allen's petition.[5] On August 29, petitions against Allen, Costlow, and McAfee were certified, and a recall election was scheduled for November 6, 2012.[6] The recall petition against St. Clair was deemed invalid because if five of the eight city council members were to be recalled, the city council would not be able to reach quorum.[1]
Election results
Gary Allen
| Should Gary Allen be recalled? | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
 No | 305 | 54% | ||
| Yes | 289 | 49% | ||
Ed McAfee
| Should Ed McAfee be recalled? | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
| No | 132 | 53% | ||
| Yes | 115 | 47% | ||
Ron Costlow
| Should Ron Costlow be recalled? | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
 Yes | 183 | 54% | ||
| No | 153 | 46% | ||
See also
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Joplin Globe, "Attorney files affidavits seeking criminal charges against mayor," September 10, 2012
- ↑ Cherokee County News-Advocate, "Vote canvas produces no changes in election results," November 12, 2012
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Joplin Globe, "Baxter Springs mayor's supporters circulate petition in hopes of recalling her opponents," June 20, 2012 (dead link)
- ↑ Joplin Globe, "Recall petition, aimed at Baxter Springs mayor, rejected," June 27, 2012 (dead link)
- ↑ Cherokee County News-Advocate, "Recall petition filed in Baxter council fight," August 7, 2012
- ↑ Joplin Globe, "Recall of Baxter Springs council members to be on November ballot," August 30, 2012 (dead link)
