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States where state legislators can be recalled
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State legislators can be recalled in 18 states. Click here for a list of current state legislative recall efforts.
In these 18 states, 15 set the number of signatures required to force a recall election as a percentage of the number of votes cast in the most recent election for the office held by the targeted incumbent. In the other three states (Michigan, Oregon, and Wisconsin), the number of signatures required is a percentage of the number of votes cast for the office of governor in the targeted incumbent's legislative district.
In seven of these states (Alaska, Georgia, Kansas, Minnesota, Montana, Rhode Island, and Washington), a state legislative recall petition cannot be approved for circulation unless it is established that the legislator engaged in certain types of conduct.
In any of the states that allow state legislative recall, the shortest number of days allowed to collect the required number of signatures is 60 days. Only three states (Colorado, Idaho, and Wisconsin) allow 60 days. The remaining states allow 90 or more days; two states (Alaska and North Dakota) do not explicitly give a time within which the signatures must be collected.
List of states where state legislators can be recalled
| State legislature | Recall laws | Signatures needed | Time allowed to collect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska | Alaska's laws | 25% of the number of votes cast in the last election for that office. | Unspecified in the law |
| Arizona | Arizona's laws | 25% of the number of votes cast in the last election for that office. | 120 days |
| California | California's laws | 20% of the number of votes cast in the last election for that office. | 160 days |
| Colorado | Colorado's laws | 25% of the number of votes cast in the last election for that office. | 60 days |
| Georgia | Georgia's laws | 30% of the number of registered voters in the last election for that office. | 90 days |
| Idaho | Idaho's laws | 20% of the number of votes cast in the last election for that office. | 60 days |
| Kansas | Kansas' laws | 40% of the number of votes cast in the last election for that office. | 90 days |
| Louisiana | Louisiana's laws | 33.3% of the number of votes cast in the last election for that office. | 180 days |
| Michigan | Michigan's laws | 25% of the number of votes cast in the last election for the office of Governor of Michigan in the targeted state legislative district | 90 days |
| Minnesota | Minnesota's laws | 25% of the number of votes cast in the last election for that office. | 90 days |
| Montana | Montana's laws | 15% of the number of votes cast in the last election for that office. | 3 months |
| Nevada | Nevada's laws | 25% of the number of votes cast in the last election for that office. | 90 days |
| New Jersey | New Jersey's laws | 25% of the number of votes cast in the last election for that office. | 160 days |
| North Dakota | North Dakota's laws | 25% of the number of votes cast in the last election for that office. | Unspecified in the law |
| Oregon | Oregon's laws | 15% of the number of votes cast in the last election for the office of Governor of Oregon in the targeted state legislative district | 90 days |
| Rhode Island | Rhode Island's laws | 15% of the number of votes cast in the last election for that office. | 90 days |
| Washington | Washington's laws | 35% of the number of votes cast in the last election for that office. | 180 days |
| Wisconsin | Wisconsin's laws | 25% of the number of votes cast in the last election for the office of Governor of Wisconsin in the targeted state legislative district | 60 days |
List of states where reasons are required for recall
| State | Grounds required |
|---|---|
| Alaska | Lack of fitness, incompetence, neglect of duties or corruption (AS §15.45.510) |
| Georgia | Act of malfeasance or misconduct while in office; violation of oath of office; failure to perform duties prescribed by law; willfully misused, converted, or misappropriated, without authority, public property or public funds entrusted to or associated with the elective office to which the official has been elected or appointed. Discretionary performance of a lawful act or a prescribed duty shall not constitute a ground for recall of an elected public official. (Ga. Code §21-4-3(7) and 21-4-4(c)) |
| Kansas | Conviction for a felony, misconduct in office, incompetence, or failure to perform duties prescribed by law. No recall submitted to the voters shall be held void because of the insufficiency of the grounds, application, or petition by which the submission was procured. (KS Stat. §25-4302) |
| Minnesota | Serious malfeasance or nonfeasance during the term of office in the performance of the duties of the office or conviction during the term of office of a serious crime (Article VIII, §6, Minnesota Constitution) |
| Montana | Physical or mental lack of fitness, incompetence, violation of oath of office, official misconduct, conviction of certain felony offenses (enumerated in Title 45). No person may be recalled for performing a mandatory duty of the office he holds or for not performing any act that, if performed, would subject him to prosecution for official misconduct. (Mont. Code §2-16-603) |
| Rhode Island | Authorized in the case of a general officer who has been indicted or informed against for a felony, convicted of a misdemeanor, or against whom a finding of probable cause of violation of the code of ethics has been made by the ethics commission (Article IV, §1, Rhode Island Constitution) |
| Washington | Commission of some act or acts of malfeasance or misfeasance while in office, or who has violation of oath of office (Article I, §33, Washington State Constitution) |
Historical state legislative recalls
Ballotpedia tracked 186 recall efforts against 168 state lawmakers from 1913 to 2024. During that time, 40 recalls made the ballot and 22 state legislators were successfully recalled.[1]
Michigan led the way with 60 state legislative recall efforts from 1913 to 2024. Of those 60 recall efforts, three were successful. Wisconsin followed with 32 state legislative recall efforts. Six of those recalls were successful.
Footnotes
