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States that have pre-petition signature requirements for recalls
| Political recalls |
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A political recall is the process of removing an elected official from office via a public effort before the official's term is completed. This process includes the circulation of petitions by recall organizers, the evaluation of signatures by election officials, and a public vote if the petitions are deemed to have sufficient valid signatures.
Several states require recall proponents to file notices of intent, affidavits, or applications before a recall petition is allowed to be circulated. Of the states that have this requirement, nine require signatures to be submitted with the notice of intent, affidavit, or application. These signatures are required in addition to recall petition signatures. They are not counted toward the number of signatures required to be collected on petitions in order to put a recall election on the ballot.
This page includes information about those pre-petition signature requirements, including:
- A map of states that require pre-petition signatures for recalls.
- A list of pre-petition signature requirements for recall notices, affidavits, and applications.
Map of states that require pre-petition signatures for recalls
In the map below, the states shown in orange require pre-petition signatures for recalls. Those in blue do not require signatures before recall petitions are allowed to be circulated, and those in gray do not allow recalls.
List of pre-petition signatures requirements for recalls
The table below includes a list of states that require pre-petition signatures for recalls. Details of the signature requirements are included for each state.
| State | Signature requirements prior to petition circulation | Source link |
|---|---|---|
| Alaska | State level: "qualified voters equal in number to 10 percent of those who voted in the preceding general election in the state or in the senate or house district of the official sought to be recalled, 100 of whom will serve as sponsors" Local level: "at least 10 municipal voters who will sponsor the petition" |
Alaska Statutes Section 15.45.500 & Alaska Statutes Section 29.26.260 |
| California | "(1) For a state office, and for a local office where the number of registered voters in the electoral jurisdiction is at least 100,000, the minimum number of proponents listed on the notice of intention is 50, or equal to five times the number of signatures required to have been filed on the nomination paper of the officer sought to be recalled, whichever is higher. (2) For a local office where the number of registered voters in the electoral jurisdiction is at least 1,000 but less than 100,000, the minimum number of proponents listed on the notice of intention is 30, or equal to three times the number of signatures required to have been filed on the nomination paper of the officer sought to be recalled, whichever is higher. |
California Code, Elections Code - ELEC § 11020 |
| Georgia | "The number of official sponsors necessary to file an application for a recall petition must be equal in number to at least 100 electors or equal in number to at least 10 percent of the number of electors who were registered to vote at the last preceding election for any of the candidates offering for the office held by the public official sought to be recalled, whichever is smaller." | Georgia Code § 21-4-5 |
| Idaho | "Before or at the time of beginning to circulate any petition for the recall of any officer subject to recall, the person or persons or organization or organizations under whose authority the recall petition is to be circulated shall send or deliver to the secretary of state or county clerk, as the case may be, a copy of a prospective petition duly signed by at least twenty (20) electors eligible to sign such petition." | Idaho Statutes, Section 34-1704 |
| Illinois | Specific to the governor: "The affidavit shall have been signed by the proponent of the recall petition, at least 20 members of the House of Representatives, and at least 10 members of the Senate, with no more than half of the signatures of members of each chamber from the same established political party." | Illinois Constitution, Article III, Section 7 |
| Kansas | "The application ... shall include ... (e) the designation of at least 100 residents of the state of Kansas who possess the qualifications of electors of the state of Kansas and who subscribe to the application as sponsors for purposes of circulation, and (f) the signatures and addresses of registered electors in the state or election district of the state officer sought to be recalled equal in number to not less than 10% of the votes cast for all candidates for the office of the state officer sought to be recalled, such percentage to be based upon the last general election for the current term of office of the officer sought to be recalled." | Kansas Statutes, § 25-4306 |
| Minnesota | "A petition to recall a state officer may be proposed by 25 or more persons, who must be eligible to sign and shall sign the proposed petition for the recall of the officer." | Minnesota Statutes, Section 211C.04 |
| Nevada | The notice of intent must be signed by three registered voters who voted in the last election for the office and currently lives in the jurisdiction the official represents. | Nevada Revised Statutes, Section 306.015 |
| Rhode Island | "Such a recall may be instituted by filing with the state board of elections an application for issuance of a recall petition against said general officer which is signed by duly qualified electors equal to three percent (3%) of the total number of votes cast at the last preceding general election for that office." | Constitution of the state of Rhode Island Article IV, Section 1 |
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