Keith James recall, West Palm Beach, Florida (2023)
| Keith James recall |
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| Officeholders |
| Recall status |
| Signature requirement |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2023 Recalls in Florida Florida recall laws Mayoral recalls Recall reports |
An effort to recall Mayor Keith James is underway in West Palm Beach, Florida. Petitioners began gathering signatures on February 4, 2023.[1]
Recall supporters
The recall effort was organized by Rodney Mayo, who filed to run against James in the March 2023 mayoral election. Mayo's candidacy was successfully challenged by James on the grounds that Mayo's legal residency was at an address in Lantana, Florida. Mayo's disqualification left James unopposed on the ballot. James announced on January 18, 2023, that he would pursue a recall election rather than appeal the ruling on his residency.[2]
Recall opponents
In a response to the recall, James said, "Residents will see that this is not about what is best for our city but whatever feeds Mr. Mayo’s interests, or gets him attention and headlines. I am going to focus on doing my job as Mayor to run the city of West Palm Beach and carry on the momentum of progress we started four years ago for all our residents. My focus is on building a brighter future, not dismantling things when things don’t go my way."[2]
Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in Florida
State law restricts the grounds for which officeholders can be recalled in Florida. The allowable grounds include "malfeasance, misfeasance, neglect of duty, drunkenness, incompetence, permanent inability to perform official duties, and conviction of a felony involving moral turpitude."[3]
In Florida, for a special recall election to be scheduled, organizers must conduct two rounds of signature collection. In the first round, signatures must be collected within 30 days, and the number required depends on how many voters are registered in the officeholder's jurisdiction. 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.[3]
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ All Events, "Recall Mayor Keith James Petition Kick Off!" accessed February 16, 2023
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Florida Politics, "Disqualified from Mayor’s race, Rodney Mayo vows recall of unopposed Keith James," January 18, 2023
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 The 2020 Florida Statutes, "Fla. Stat. Ann §100.361," accessed August 24, 2021
