Help us improve in just 2 minutes—share your thoughts in our reader survey.
Mayor and city council recall, Joplin, Missouri (2020)
| Joplin Mayor and City Council recall |
|---|
 |
| Officeholders |
Diane Reid Adams Keenan Cortez Anthony Monteleone Chuck Copple Christina Williams |
| Recall status |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2020 Recalls in Missouri Missouri recall laws Mayoral recalls City council recalls Recall reports |
An effort in Joplin, Missouri, to recall Mayor Ryan Stanley and councilmembers Diane Reid Adams, Keenan Cortez, Anthony Monteleone, Chuck Copple, and Christina Williams was initiated in November 2020.[1] Recall organizers did not submit signatures by the deadline on December 24, 2020.[2][3]
To read about other recall efforts related to the coronavirus and government responses to the pandemic, click here.
Recall supporters
The recall effort was initiated in response to a special meeting of the Joplin City Council on November 19, 2020, in which a mask mandate was reinstated. The six officials targeted for recall voted in favor of the mandate, which went into effect on November 20, 2020, and lasted until February 28, 2021, when it automatically expired.[4][5] Recall organizers also accused the officials of violating the Missouri Sunshine Law when several members of the city council had dinner together prior to the special meeting.[1]
Recall opponents
Adams said in response to the recall effort, "I know I have always voted the way my constituents ask me to." She told The Joplin Globe that she keeps records of all calls and emails she receives as a member of the city council.[1]
Stanley said, "I trust the process. I certainly would not try to undermine it because I feel like it's rigorous for a reason."[1]
Cortez said, "I have confidence in my record as a member of the Joplin City Council. I do understand the concerns that some citizens may have with the recent passing of the mask ordinance; however, I stand by my vote and would do it again if I found that would be in the best interest of the citizens of this community."[1]
Monteleone said, "One of the things I love about Joplin is her people aren't shy about letting me know where they stand on the issues. That makes my job a lot easier. I'm grateful to these constituents for showing me exactly how they feel."[1]
Copple and Williams gave no comment on the recall effort.[1]
Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in Missouri
Joplin's city charter establishes that recall elections need signatures equal to 20% of registered voters in the city. Recall organizers needed to submit 6,629 valid signatures to put the recall election on the ballot.[2]
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
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 the Joplin Globe, "Recall petitions seek to oust 6 on Joplin City Council," November 23, 2020
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Joplin Globe, "No council recall petitions submitted by deadline," December 24, 2020
- ↑ Ballotpedia staff, "Phone communication with the Joplin City Clerk's Office," August 10, 2021
- ↑ The Joplin Globe, "UPDATED: Joplin approves mandatory mask ordinance in special meeting," November 19, 2020
- ↑ KOAM, "Conversation with the mayor: Why Joplin will let a face mask ordinance expire," February 26, 2021
