Paul Bixler recall, Liberty Elementary School District, Arizona (2023)
| Liberty Elementary School District recall |
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An effort to recall Paul Bixler from the five-member Liberty Elementary School District Governing Board in Arizona did not go to a vote in 2023. Recall supporters did not submit petitions by the deadline on June 9, 2023.[1]
The recall effort began in February 2022. To get the recall on the ballot, supporters would have had to file 2,624 signatures with the Office of the Maricopa County School Superintendent.[2][3]
Bixler was elected to an open seat on the board in 2020.[4]
Recall supporters
The following grounds for recall were listed on the petition:[5]
| “ | On 1/25/22, Paul spoke at the House Education Committee opposing House Bill 2161 , Opposed Extending Parents' Rights.
Paul supports children 5 years & up intermingling in sports, including bathrooms, changing rooms, or common areas. 3/30/22 Senate Bill 1165 was signed into law. BOE meeting on 9/26/22, while adopting policy JJIA, Paul calls Arizona law 'unconstitutional', which it wasn' t. October a grandmother spoke at a BOE meeting regarding Paul and her interaction in the little girl' s room that made her very uncomfortable. Paul has changed his license, by law Paul must use the little girl's room, it' s against the law for Paul to use the little boy's room.[6] |
” |
Recall opponents
Bixler said she has been personally attacked since becoming a school board member. “I thought these were better people. I could not believe what they were saying," Bixler said. “This is not a choice. I do not choose to be transgender.”[4]
The Arizona School Boards Association released the following statement:[4]
| “ | No school board member in any community in this state or nation should ever feel that they are placing themselves or their families at risk by serving their communities. All members of the community are welcome to provide input on the decisions of the school board. However, it is unacceptable for anyone to disrupt a public meeting, provoke confrontation, harass, based on race, gender or otherwise, or threaten for any reason a public official.[6] | ” |
Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in Arizona
Recall supporters filed the recall application on February 9, 2023. To get the recall on the ballot, they would have had to file 2,624 signatures with the Office of the Maricopa County School Superintendent by June 9, 2023.[2]
2023 recall efforts
- See also: School board recalls
Ballotpedia tracked 48 school board recall efforts against 97 board members in 2023. Sixteen of those board members faced recall elections. The recall elections were held on January 10, 2023, August 1, 2023, August 8, 2023, August 29, 2023, November 7, 2023, and December 12, 2023. The school board recall success rate was 13.4%.
The chart below details the status of 2023 recall efforts by individual school board member.
See also
- Liberty Elementary School District, Arizona
- Recall campaigns in Arizona
- Political recall efforts, 2023
- School board recalls
- States that allow school board recalls
External links
- Search Google News for this topic
- Liberty Elementary School District
- Office of the Maricopa County School Superintendent
Footnotes
- ↑ Litchfield Park Independent, "Recall effort against Liberty Elementary transgender board member fails," June 12, 2023
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Office of the Maricopa School Superintendent, "Recalls for the Current Year," accessed February 15, 2023
- ↑ Liberty Elementary School District, "Governing Board," accessed February 15, 2023
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 12 News, "'This is not a choice. I do not choose to be transgender': West Valley school board member becomes target of harassment," January 10, 2023
- ↑ Office of the Maricopa County School Superintendent, "Application for Recall Petition Serial Number: Paul Bixler of Liberty 25," accessed February 15, 2023
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
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