Help us improve in just 2 minutes—share your thoughts in our reader survey.
Emily MacDonald recall, Woodland Joint Unified School District, California (2023-2024)
| Woodland Joint Unified School District recall |
|---|
 |
| Officeholders |
| Recall status |
| Recall election date |
| March 5, 2024 |
| Signature requirement |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2024 Recalls in California California recall laws School board recalls Recall reports |
A recall election against Emily MacDonald, the Area Two representative on the seven-member Woodland Joint Unified School District board of trustees in California, was held on March 5, 2024.[1] A majority of voters cast ballots in favor of removing MacDonald from office, approving the recall effort.[2] MacDonald resigned from her position before the results from the recall election were finalized.[3]
The recall petition was approved for circulation in September 2023.[4][5] Recall supporters submitted 1,349 petition signatures on November 3, 2023.[6]
The recall effort started after a board meeting on June 15, 2023. At the meeting, the board unanimously voted to make June the school district's LGBTQI+ Pride Month. After that vote, MacDonald read a statement.[7] Click here to read her statement.
Recall vote
Emily MacDonald recall, 2024
Emily MacDonald lost the Woodland Joint Unified School District school board Trustee Area 2 recall election on March 5, 2024.
Recall Vote |
% |
Votes |
|||
| ✖ | Yes |
63.6
|
893 | ||
No |
36.4
|
510 | |||
Total Votes |
1,403 | ||||
|
|
Recall supporters
The following grounds for recall were included in the notice of intent to recall:[8]
| “ |
We are seeking to recall Governing Board Member, Trustee Emily MacDonald in response to statements that she made about the transgender community at the June 15, 2023 school board meeting. In her commentary, Trustee MacDonald referred to transgender people as a 'social contagion' and stated that the 'normalization of transgender identity' has had 'unintended consequences.' The school district and school board has repeatedly affirmed their commitment to create a 'safe, supportive, and inclusive environment' for all of Woodland’s students. Trustee MacDonald’s divisive comments undermined this critical function of the school board. These statements about transgender persons were ignorant, dehumanizing, and created a greater risk of physical danger for Woodland’s LGBTQIA+ students. When Trustee MacDonald ran for school board, she did not disclose these controversial views on the LGBTQIA+ community as a candidate for office. In light of these recent public statements, we believe that the voters of Trustee Area 2 deserve a chance to decide whether they want Trustee MacDonald to continue to represent them.[9] |
” |
Recall opponents
MacDonald filed the following statement in response to the recall against her:[1]
| “ |
As a WJUSD Trustee, I am concerned that in our efforts to support and affirm transgender and non-binary students, we are inadvertently sending all students a message that feelings of discomfort around body image, relationships and gender roles can mean a student is born into the wrong body. Some students may then think that medical treatment is necessary or desirable. Our message should accept students as they are, celebrate the wonderful diversity of students at WJUSD and acknowledge the unique gifts that each contributes to the whole. Regardless of this petition's outcome, I am heartened by the community's civic engagement in the democratic process. By passionately sharing opinions in a public forum, we model for the citizens of the future the importance of government by the people and for the people. I appreciate the many good-faith conversations I have had with community members, who, regardless of opinion, share with me a desire to see all WJUSD students succeed. Our ability to continue this discussion and reach common ground will determine our success as a District in educating students and creating a place where all students thrive.[9] |
” |
Background
MacDonald's statement
During a board meeting on June 15, 2023, MacDonald read the following statement:[7]
| “ |
For a long period of American history, lesbian, gay and bisexual Americans have been grouped together with transgender Americans, and while I share with everyone here enormous respect for the achievements and contributions of Americans who are lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender, this coalition forces acceptance of every aspect of transgenderism in order to be considered an ally of the others and that is wrong. [...] The political needs and aims of these groups have always been divergent. Women who love women have little in common with women who wish to have a mastectomy, take testosterone, and live as men. Men who love men have little in common with men who wish to take estrogen and live as women… Transgender identification has more than doubled in five years, particularly among teenage girls, who were one of the least likely demographics to identify as transgender until the last few years when it became the largest demographic to do so by a large margin. The increase has been so massive that it defies any reasonable explanation at least some degree of social contagion. […] We must act with great caution in order to protect the increasing numbers of children who are experiencing transgender procedures as a result of social contagion without sacrificing the tiny number of individuals who identify as transgender even without social contagion, education campaigns and the social cache attached to a transgender identity in the present. Thank you.[9] |
” |
Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in California
California does not require specific grounds to be met for recall efforts to make the ballot. Recall supporters must collect signatures equal to 10% to 30% of registered voters depending on the jurisdiction's population and have 40 to 160 days to do so depending on the size of the jurisdiction.[10]
For the Woodland Joint Unified School District recall, signatures equal to 25% of the registered voters of the district were required. Those 1,078 signatures had to be submitted by November 4, 2023.[11] Recall supporters submitted 1,349 petition signatures on November 3, 2023. The Yolo County Election Office had 30 days to verify the signatures.[6]
2024 recall efforts
- See also: School board recalls
Ballotpedia tracked 40 school board recall efforts against 83 board members in 2024. Recall elections in 2024 removed 14 members from office, including three who resigned before the election, and retained seven members in office. The school board recall success rate was 13.4%.
The chart below details the status of 2024 recall efforts by individual school board member.
2023 recall efforts
- See also: School board recalls
Ballotpedia tracked 48 school board recall efforts against 97 board members in 2023. Sixteen of those board members faced recall elections. The recall elections were held on January 10, 2023, August 1, 2023, August 8, 2023, August 29, 2023, November 7, 2023, and December 12, 2023. The school board recall success rate was 13.4%.
The chart below details the status of 2023 recall efforts by individual school board member.
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
- Woodland Joint Unified School District, California
- Recall campaigns in California
- Political recall efforts, 2024
- Political recall efforts, 2023
- School board recalls
- States that allow school board recalls
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Yolo County Elections, "Recall of Woodland Joint Unified School District Trustee Area 2 Governing Board Member Emily MacDonald," accessed December 5, 2023
- ↑ Yolo County Elections, "Returns for March 5, 2024, Presidential Primary Election: Woodland JUSD Trustee Area 2, Recall," accessed March 20, 2024
- ↑ The Sacramento Bee, "Woodland school board member facing recall over comments about ‘transgenderism’ resigns," March 15, 2024
- ↑ Abbey Smith, “Email communication with Yolo County Elections," September 12, 2023
- ↑ Woodland Joint Unified School District, "Board of Trustees," accessed September 12, 2023
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 KCRA 3, "Petition filed to recall Woodland school board member; what's next," November 4, 2023
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Daily Democrat, "Public comments pour into Woodland Joint Unified School District board meeting in response to trustee’s recent LGBTQI+ comments," July 2, 2023
- ↑ Recall MacDonald, "Notice of Intention," accessed September 12, 2023
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "Recall of Local Officials," accessed July 27, 2021
- ↑ Abbey Smitih, “Email communication with Yolo County Elections," October 24, 2023
| ||||||||||||||
 |
State of California Sacramento (capital) |
|---|---|
| Elections |
What's on my ballot? | Elections in 2025 | How to vote | How to run for office | Ballot measures |
| Government |
Who represents me? | U.S. President | U.S. Congress | Federal courts | State executives | State legislature | State and local courts | Counties | Cities | School districts | Public policy |
