Monte Martin recall, Fernley, Nevada 2009
| Fernley City Council recall |
|---|
 |
| Officeholders |
| Recall status |
| Recall election date |
| July 8, 2009 |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2009 Recalls in Nevada Nevada recall laws City council recalls Recall reports |
A notice of intent to recall Councilman Monte Martin was filed on July 8, 2009 in Fernley, Nevada. The recall election was scheduled for October 9, 2009 in Lyon County for voters in the City of Fernley.[1]
According to the filed notice, residents are calling for a recall because Martin "failed to provide adequate oversight of the (former) treasurer (Bonnie Duke); failed to make proper inquiries of the treasurer when her performance was brought into question; failed to provide adequate oversight of the city manager (former City Manager Gary Bacock); relies almost totally on staff for information on issues before council; doesn't take independent steps to research issues; (and) fails to respond to constituents concerns and complaints."[2]
The recall campaign was initiated by Fernley residents Rob and Donna Chase and Norman Whyte. Councilman Martin was re-elected in 2006. In the October 9, 2009 election Martin faced off against Robert "Bob" Chase; Martin received the least number of votes.[3]
| Monte Martin recall | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
 Yes
|
97 | 62.6% | ||
| No | 58 | 37.4% | ||
| Total votes | 155[4] | 100.00% | ||
| Voter turnout | % | |||
Response to recall
In response to the recall, Martin said, "I have done nothing wrong politically, ethically, or morally to justify being recalled. This is abusing the democratic processes. Allegations and personal opinions aren't facts. There are normal terms of office which should be honored and recall should be reserved for egregious circumstances. Forcing special elections for differences of opinions on a few issues which are a normal component of democracy is not a good way to spend taxpayers' money." Martin's written statement continued to add that "Council decisions require at least three votes so any council action is not exclusively due to me. Votes which I have made and been in the minority in are irrelevant because they did not prevail; they just mean there was a difference of opinion. It is good that not all substantive issues are 5-0 votes; it means the council members are taking their job seriously and they are doing their homework and looking at issues in different ways. The discussions mean issues are more thought out."[5]
Signatures
On July 22, 2009 recall supporters announced that they have collected more than the required signatures to place the measure on the ballot. Organizers were required to obtain 25% of the registered voters who voted in the last election in Ward 3, the district council member Martin represents.[6] The Nevada Secretary of State's Office verified the signatures on August 27, 2009. Of the 283 submitted signatures only 20 were found to be invalid.[5]
See also
Additional reading
Footnotes
- ↑ Reno-Gazette Journal, "Special Recall Election set for October 9," September 16, 2009
- ↑ Reno Gazette-Journal, "Fernley City Councilman is subject of notice of recall," July 8, 2009
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 City of Fernley, "Election Results," accessed October 11, 2009
- ↑ Microsoft Calculator
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Reno Gazette-Journal, "Secretary of State confirms recall signatures, Special Election to be held in mid-October," September 9, 2009
- ↑ Reno Gazette-Journal, "Organizers say they have signatures for Councilman's recall," July 29, 2009
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