La'Shadion Shemwell recall, McKinney, Texas (2020)
| McKinney City Council recall |
|---|
 |
| Officeholders |
| Recall status |
| Recall election date |
| November 3, 2020 |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2020 Recalls in Texas Texas recall laws City council recalls Recall reports |
An effort in McKinney, Texas, to recall Councilman La'Shadion Shemwell was initiated in November 2019.[1] The recall election took place on November 3, 2020, and voters approved Shemwell's recall by a vote of 72.1% for the recall to 27.9% against.[2] The election was originally scheduled for May, but on March 24 the city council voted to postpone it until November 3 over public health concerns due to the coronavirus pandemic.[3]
Shemwell filed a lawsuit in January 2020 to stop the recall election. The lawsuit argued that allowing the entire city to vote in the recall election dilutes the votes of residents in District 1, which Shemwell represents. Shemwell dropped the lawsuit on March 13, citing concerns about the coronavirus pandemic and his intent to focus on helping people affected by the pandemic. A hearing on his claims was originally scheduled for March 30, 2020.[4]
Recall vote
The recall election was held on November 3, 2020, and was titled Proposition A on the ballot. Shemwell was recalled from the council by a vote of 48,223 votes for the recall to 18,624 votes against the recall.[2]
Recall supporters
Petitions against Shemwell stated the following as reasons for his recall:
| “ | McKinney District 1 Councilman, La’Shadion Shemwell, has not upheld his Oath of Office, has violated the City Charter, has disregarded the City of McKinney Code of Ethical Conduct, has not appeared at meetings and events at which he agreed to represent his constituents, and has made inflammatory statements about residents and staff of the City of McKinney. Furthermore, Mr. Shemwell has been arrested on multiple occasions while serving on council.[5] | ” |
Recall opponents
Shemwell responded to the signatures being verified in the recall against him. He said, "Not going to happen. I’m going to fight with every breath in my body, and I’m going to see you in court."[6]
Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in Texas
Petitions were submitted to the city secretary on November 20, 2019. Petitioners needed to gather 2,127 valid signatures by January 4, 2020, in order to put the recall election on the ballot.[1] The city secretary found 3,062 signatures valid.[6]
See also
- Recall campaigns in Texas
- Political recall efforts, 2020
- Political recall efforts, 2019
- City council recalls
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Community Impact Newspaper, "Petition circulating to recall McKinney City Council member, city officials confirm," November 21, 2019
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Collin County, TX, "November 3, 2020, Summary Results Report," accessed November 19, 2020
- ↑ Texas Scorecard', "Shemwell Drops Lawsuit, McKinney Delays Recall Due to Coronavirus," March 26, 2020
- ↑ Community Impact Newspaper, "Lawsuit challenging McKinney recall election favors district vote over citywide vote," February 5, 2020
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 CBS DFW, "Controversial McKinney Councilman La’Shadion Shemwell To Face Recall Election Unless He Resigns," January 7, 2020
