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City council recall, Calexico, California (2023-2024)
| Calexico city council recall |
|---|
 |
| Officeholders |
Gilberto Manzanarez Gloria Romo |
| Recall status |
Did not go to a vote (Romo) |
| Recall election date |
| April 16, 2024 (Ureña & Manzanarez) |
| Signature requirement |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2024 Recalls in California California recall laws City council recalls Recall reports |
An election to recall City Councilmembers Raul Ureña and Gilberto Manzanarez was scheduled for April 16, 2024, in Calexico, California. Voters recalled Ureña and Manzanarez.[1][2][3]
An effort to recall Mayor Gloria Romo did not go to a vote.[4][5]
In Calexico, the mayor is chosen from among the five members of the city council. The position rotates annually. When the effort to recall Ureña and Manzanarez began, Ureña was serving as mayor. Romo became mayor on January 17, 2024, and was served a notice of intent to recall on the same day.[4][6]
Recall vote
Ureña recall
Raul Ureña recall, 2024
Raul Ureña lost the Calexico City Council recall election on April 16, 2024.
Recall Vote |
% |
Votes |
|||
| ✖ | Yes |
72.3
|
3,971 | ||
No |
27.7
|
1,525 | |||
Total Votes |
5,496 | ||||
|
|
Manzanarez recall
Gilberto Manzanarez recall, 2024
Gilberto Manzanarez lost the Calexico City Council recall election on April 16, 2024.
Recall Vote |
% |
Votes |
|||
| ✖ | Yes |
71.2
|
3,878 | ||
No |
28.8
|
1,569 | |||
Total Votes |
5,447 | ||||
|
|
Recall supporters
Organizers have said they initiated the recall effort against Ureña because of poor leadership, policies that have worsened crime, a lack of support for downtown merchants, and tense relationships with law enforcement and other elected city officials.[7]
Former Calexico mayor Maritza Hurtado coordinated the recall effort.[8]
Recall opponents
Regarding the recall effort, Ureña said, “I feel like they are stirring up a lot of hate, a lot of personal attacks, especially towards myself as a transgender person or as a gay person. And their recall, not that it doesn't have any merit but it is very little merit to what they are making it out to be. It's probably like 90% hate and 10 percent valid claims in which we are working on."[8]
Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in California
In California, the recall process begins with a notice of intention to recall. Ureña and Manzanarez were served with notices by community member Rebecca Lemon on May 3, 2023, during a city council meeting.[1]
Recall organizers had 120 days in which to collect approximately 4,200 signatures to trigger a recall election for Ureña and Manzanarez.[7][9]
Recall organizers submitted signatures for Ureña and Manzanarez on November 16, 2023.[10][11]
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 2024 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
- Recall campaigns in California
- Political recall efforts, 2023
- Political recall efforts, 2024
- City council recalls
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 The Desert Review, "Ureña and Manzanarez unfazed by attempts to recall," May 4, 2023
- ↑ Imperial Valley Press, "Calexico City Council meeting debates long-running political divide, sets a date for the Recall election," December 22, 2023
- ↑ Los Angeles Times, "Calexico resoundingly ousts town’s first transgender mayor and a council ally," April 18, 2024
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Calexico Chronicle, "Calexico’s New Mayor Hit with Recall Papers," January 18, 2024
- ↑ Ballotpedia staff, "Email communication with Calexico City Clerk," June 17, 2024
- ↑ Government website of Calexico, California, "Mayor & City Council," accessed February 1, 2024
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Beyond Borders Gazette, "Boiling Political Tension Brings Forward Recall Attempt Against Two Calexico Politicians," accessed August 1, 2023
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 KYMA, "Calexico’s Recall Committee asks residents to sign a petition to recall the mayor," August 8, 2023
- ↑ KYMA, "Protesters make an appearance outside the Calexico Recall petition event," August 10, 2023
- ↑ Imperial Valley Press, "Calexico recall sends signatures to County, moves on to verification process," November 18, 2023
- ↑ KYMA, "Recall for Calexico mayor and council member approved," November 29, 2023
