John Conely and Bill Trombley recall, Brighton Area Schools, Michigan (2022)
| Brighton Area Schools recall |
|---|
 |
| Officeholders |
Bill Trombley |
| Recall status |
| Signature requirement |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2022 Recalls in Michigan Michigan recall laws School board recalls Recall reports |
An effort to recall Bill Trombley and John Conely from their positions on the Brighton Area Schools Board of Education in Michigan did not go to a vote in 2022. The recall petitioner ended the effort.[1]
Conely and Trombley's terms on the board were both set to expire on December 31, 2024.[2][3]
Recall supporters
The recall petitions were submitted by Sarah Cross, an attorney and a parent of a Brighton High School student.[4]
The second recall petition language filed against Conely said:[5]
| “ | On 12/03/2021 Mr. Conely sent this email: 'You mean like Hitler did? Mandates, we don't have laws to support them. We are not Socialists.[6] | ” |
The first application for a recall petition against Conely included the following grounds for recall:[7]
| “ |
At a Special Board Meeting on 12/07/2021 Mr. Conely presented a slide show created with the help of outside group and failed to disclose or acknowledge what group created the slideshow. On 12/03/2021 Mr. Conely sent the following response to a member of the community who supported masking in schools: 'You mean like Hitler did? Mandates, we don’t have laws to support them. We are not Socialists.'[6] |
” |
The third recall petition language filed against Trombley said that he admitted at a school board meeting that he had not read his board packet.[8]
The second recall petition language filed against Trombley said:[5]
| “ | At a Board Meeting on 09/27/2020 Mr. Trombley stated that he did not read the Board Packet.[6] | ” |
The first application for a recall petition against Trombley included the following grounds for recall:[7]
| “ |
At a Board Meeting on 09/27/2021 Mr. Trombley coughed through the presentation of a community member during the call to the public and then proceeded to cough on the woman as he exited the meeting. At a Board Meeting on 09/27/2021 Mr. Trombley accused 3 members of the Brighton Area School Board of intentionally hiding policy changes and trying to sneak policy changes past the Board. At a Board Meeting on 09/27/2021 Mr. Trombley admitted that he did not read Board Packets and therefore was not prepared for Board Meetings.[6] |
” |
Recall opponents
Conely said the ongoing recall efforts against bothered him because they "discourage people from running for office who want to serve."[9]
Trombley said he believed "there is an ulterior motive and Cross is trying to gain publicity for her practice." He also said he wanted "the people to have the choice of what’s best for their kids."[9]
Attorney Dale Schaller, on behalf of Conely, responded to the first recall attempt by stating:[10]
| “ |
Clearly from the base of the statement, Mr. Conely was comparing mandates to the behavior of Hitler, not supporting or being in favor of the behavior of Hitler. He made it more as a negative comment, not as a positive, supportive statement in favor of Hitler.[6] |
” |
Speaking on behalf of Trombley, attorney Dan Wholihan argued that the claims in the first recall petition regarding were based on conjecture and lacked specificity.[10]
Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in Michigan
The petition to recall Trombley was approved for circulation on March 14, 2022. Conely was also included in the recall effort, but the petition against him was rejected by the Livingston County Election Commission in a clarity hearing on March 4, 2022. Recall supporters filed an appeal of that decision with the Livingston County Circuit Court.[8][9] Petition language for the recall of Conely was approved on May 6, 2022.[11]
Previous recall petitions against Conely and Trombley were rejected by the election commission in a clarity hearing on February 8, 2022.[4]
To get the recall on the ballot, supporters would have had to collect 5,472 signatures from registered voters of the school district in 180 days. Signatures would have had to be collected within 60 days of each other to remain valid.[8]
2022 recall efforts
- See also: School board recalls
Ballotpedia tracked 54 school board recall efforts against 123 board members in 2022. Recall elections against school board members were held on January 11, 2022, January 18, 2022, January 24, 2022, February 15, 2022, March 29, 2022, April 4, 2022, and November 8, 2022. The school board recall success rate was 7.3%.
The chart below details the status of 2022 recall efforts by individual school board member.
See also
- Brighton Area Schools, Michigan
- Recall campaigns in Michigan
- Political recall efforts, 2022
- School board recalls
- States that allow school board recalls
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Livingston Daily, "Cross halts Brighton schools recall signature collection, claims Conely filed police complaint," August 12, 2022
- ↑ Brighton Area Schools, "John Conely," accessed February 8, 2022
- ↑ Brighton Area Schools, "Bill Trombley," accessed February 8, 2022
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 whmi.com, "Recall Petitions Against Two Brighton Board Of Education Members Rejected," February 9, 2022
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Livingston Daily, "Brighton school recall petitions set for review, again," March 2, 2022
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Livingston County Election Commission, "Livingston County Election Commission Agenda - February 8, 2022, 1:30 PM," accessed February 8, 2022
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 WHMI 93.5, "Election Commission OKs Recall Petition Language Against Trombley," March 15, 2022
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 WHMI 93.5, "Livingston County Election Commission Again Rejects Recall Petition," March 5, 2022
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Livingston Daily, "Recall petitions against two school board members rejected; parent says she's not giving up," February 8, 2022
- ↑ Livingston Daily, "Recall petition language approved by Livingston County Election Commission," May 10, 2022
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