Felix Rivera recall, Anchorage, Alaska (2020-2021)
| Anchorage Assembly recall |
|---|
 |
| Officeholders |
| Recall status |
| Recall election date |
| April 6, 2021 |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2021 Recalls in Alaska Alaska recall laws City council recalls Recall reports |
An effort in Anchorage, Alaska to recall Anchorage Assembly Member Felix Rivera was defeated. The recall election took place April 6, 2021.[1][2] Anchorage residents voted to keep Rivera on the assembly by a margin of 56.5% to 43.5%.
Recall supporters said that Rivera allowed an assembly meeting to continue after being informed that the gathering exceeded the maximum number of people allowed by the city's coronavirus emergency order.[1] Rivera responded by denying the allegation and defending his response to the pandemic.[3]
Rivera was most recently re-elected in 2020, when he defeated Christine Hill by a margin of 50.3% to 48.6%.
To read about other recall efforts related to the coronavirus and government responses to the pandemic, click here.
Recall vote
The recall vote took place April 6, 2021.
Felix Rivera recall, 2021
Felix Rivera won the Anchorage Assembly District 4 Seat G recall election on April 6, 2021.
Recall Vote |
% |
Votes |
|||
Yes |
43.5
|
5,185 | |||
| ✔ | No |
56.5
|
6,744 | ||
Total Votes |
11,929 | ||||
|
|
Recall supporters
Anchorage residents initiated the recall in response to an August 2020 meeting of the Anchorage Assembly. Rivera, the assembly chair, allowed the meeting to continue after another assembly member informed him that the gathering exceeded the maximum number of people allowed by the city's coronavirus emergency order.[1] Supporters gave the following argument.
| “ | Assembly chair Felix Rivera on August 11, 2020 violated EO-15, an emergency order intended to protect the health and safety of Anchorage citizens, issued by the Mayor of Anchorage pursuant to AMC 3.80.060(H) by: 1) knowingly participating in an indoor gathering of more than 15 people (a meeting of the Anchorage Assembly) and 2) continuing to participate in an indoor gathering of more than 15 people at a meeting of the Anchorage Assembly after being specifically informed of the violation. Assembly chair Rivera failed to perform prescribed duties as chair of the Assembly by allowing the August 11 meeting he was presiding over to continue in violation of EO-15 after the violation was brought to his attention by a point of order. Of all citizens in Anchorage the chair of the Anchorage Assembly should have been scrupulous in obeying the gathering limitation established by paragraph 4 of EO-15. His failure to do so needlessly endangered the lives of Anchorage citizens, encouraged the spread of COVID-19 throughout the community, and merits recall from office.[3][4] | ” |
Recall opponents
Rivera issued the following response.
| “ | It is an honor to serve as your voice on the Anchorage Assembly. From rebuilding our police force, to revitalizing Anchorage’s economy, to pushing the Municipality to clean up inhumane encampments and respectfully house our population experiencing homelessness, I have been working hard for you every day and getting results.
The global pandemic has affected all our lives. I worked hard to effectively utilize millions of dollars in economic relief for neighbors affected by the pandemic and rental relief to keep families in their homes. As Chair, I worked to ensure that our meetings were open to the public even when the virus prevented in-person attendance. I work for you. With your NO vote I can continue to serve you, working to make our neighborhoods safer, grow our economy, and give you a meaningful voice in your local government.[3][4] |
” |
Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in Alaska
Petitioners were required to collect "25% of the votes cast for the seat in the April 2020 election during which Rivera was elected," which amounted to 2,735 signatures. The city clerk certified the recall petition on January 15, 2021.[2]
The recall's opponents challenged the recall petition in court, arguing that the clerk had approved the petition on a legally insufficient basis. On January 25, 2021, Alaska Superior Court Judge Dani Crosby ruled that the recall could continue.[1] The text of the ruling is below:
Ballotpedia covered 35 coronavirus-related recall efforts against 94 officials in 2022, accounting for 13% of recalls that year. This is a decrease from both 2020 and 2021. COVID-related recalls accounted for 37% of all recall efforts in both 2020 and 2021. In 2020, there were 87 COVID-related recalls against 89 officials, and in 2021, there were 131 against 214 officials.
The chart below compares coronavirus-related recalls to recalls for all other reasons in 2020, 2021, and 2022.
See also
- Recall campaigns in Alaska
- Political recall efforts, 2020
- Political recall efforts, 2021
- City council recalls
- City elections in Anchorage, Alaska (2021)
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Anchorage Daily News, "Judge rules petition to recall Anchorage Assembly member Felix Rivera can move ahead," January 25, 2021
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 AP News, "April vote set for effort to recall Anchorage Assembly chair," January 18, 2021
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Municipality of Anchorage, "LWV Ballot Review," accessed February 26, 2021
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
