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John Eric Hoover recall, Port Richey, Florida (2024)
| John Eric Hoover recall |
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| Officeholders |
| Recall status |
| Signature requirement |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2024 Recalls in Florida Florida recall laws Mayoral recalls Recall reports |
An election to recall Mayor John Eric Hoover did not go to a vote in Port Richey, Florida. Recall organizers did not submit enough valid signatures to put the recall on the ballot.[1]
Recall supporters
The recall petition listed the following as grounds for recalling Hoover:[2]
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We the undersigned Electors of the City of Port Richey support the recall of Mayor John Eric Hoover on the grounds of Malfeasance and Misfeasance in Office for the following:
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Recall opponents
Suncoast News published Hoover's response to the recall effort:[4]
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a. Violated the City Charter 3.02 & 3.05 by giving order to, and making requests of, city employees who were subordinates of the City Manager Hoover: There are hardly any occasions of this but any requests made directly to a city employee are well within my right defined by the city charter and are acceptable and agreed to by the city manager. b. Violated FL Statute 112.3143.3(a) by voting in an official capacity upon measures of open storage on properties within the city limits to his special private gain. Hoover: There was no special private gain in this instance as per the statute referenced. No conflict of voting exists on an item that affects all property owners in the city. c. Violated FLS 112.313.6 by using and attempting to use his official position to influence the resolution of Building and Code violation cases to secure exemption and/or special privilege for himself and others. Hoover: All building code violation issues that are brought to my attention are referred to the city manager for his review and action. I have no ability to influence those decisions. d. Violated FLS 112.313.2 by submitting an employment request to Pasco County Sheriff’s office and subsequently supporting dissolution of Port Richey Dispatch office to the benefit of Pasco County without public disclosure of relationship. Hoover: I applied for an IT Director Role with the Sheriff’s Office in which I interviewed and was not selected. Unrelated and sometime later the decision to move our dispatch to the county was passed 4 to 1 of which I voted in favor. e. Violated FLS 119.07 by purposely failing to disclose information of public record contained on his private email accounts after requests made under this statute. Hoover: All city business is transacted on my city email other than the occasional email from a resident that gets sent to my personal email. To my knowledge, I have provided all emails that were requested and applicable to the request. f. Failed to enforce the will of the citizens in City matters noting “He knows what’s best for the citizens” in council meetings. Hoover: Public input is very important and always wanted and considered. Every time I vote, I always take into consideration the best interests of all the residents of Port Richey. In summary, I find the allegations contained in this petition to be both absolutely ludicrous and meritless. To be honest, the committee behind this recall attempt should be ashamed of themselves for their intent to mislead the public into believing that there is something inappropriate happening when there is obviously and most certainly not. Given that the recall committee has members that include: 2 former council members (one that resigned to avoid a Form 6 financial disclosure requirement and another that ran for re-election this past April and lost), another resident that ran for the same election and lost, their family members, donors and supporters; it is clear that this is nothing more than a blatant attempt to undo the will of the people and remove their duly elected representative from office and hinder future progress. Port Richey has almost an entire new city council in place, including myself, that work and will continue to work tirelessly to bring about the positive changes the city desperately needs. If this recall effort continues to move forward, it will be a colossal waste of time and taxpayer dollars. I would urge every resident that is asked to act on this petition to reach out to me directly at 502-939-8444 or mayor@cityofportrichey.com so that they can be adequately presented with the absolute truth and facts that will enable them to make an educated decision on whether or not they would like to sign it.[3] |
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Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in Florida
Florida allows the following grounds for recall: malfeasance, misfeasance, neglect of duty, drunkenness, incompetence, permanent inability to perform official duties, and conviction of a felony involving moral turpitude.[5]
From the time that the recall petition is approved for circulation, signatures must be collected within 30 days. The number of signatures required depends on the number of registered voters in the jurisdiction. A minimum of 50 signatures are required in jurisdictions with fewer than 500 registered voters. In jurisdictions with 500 to 24,999 registered voters, a minimum of 100 to 1,000 signatures are required, or 10% of registered voters, whichever is higher. In jurisdictions with 25,000 or more registered voters, the number of signatures required is 1,000 or 5% of registered voters, whichever is higher.[6] The officeholder then has a chance to file a defensive statement. In the second round of signature collection, organizers have 60 days to collect signatures equal to 15% of registered voters from the officeholder's district.[6]
Recall organizers filed paperwork with the city clerk on August 8, 2024.[2] The first round of signatures was submitted on September 10, 2024.[7] Supervisor of Elections Brian Corley found that 248 of the 275 signatures submitted were valid. The requirement to put the recall on the ballot was 250 signatures.[8]
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
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Suncoast News, "Effort to recall Port Richey mayor falls two petitions short," September 17, 2024
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Suncoast News, "Residents rallying to recall Port Richey Mayor Hoover," August 13, 2024
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Suncoast News, "Mayor John Eric Hoover’s response," August 13, 2024
- ↑ The 2023 Florida Statutes, "100.361 Municipal recall." accessed October 16, 2023
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 The 2020 Florida Statutes, "Fla. Stat. Ann §100.361," accessed August 24, 2021
- ↑ Suncoast News, "Petition to recall Port Richey mayor filed," September 13, 2024
- ↑ Suncoast News, "Effort to recall Port Richey mayor falls two petitions short," September 17, 2024
