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Steve Dillard recall, Seaside, Oregon (2024)
| Steve Dillard recall |
|---|
 |
| Officeholders |
| Recall status |
| Recall election date |
| July 31, 2024 |
| Signature requirement |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2024 Recalls in Oregon Oregon recall laws City council recalls Recall reports |
An election to recall Ward 1 City Councilman Steve Dillard was scheduled for July 31, 2024, in Seaside, Oregon. Voters recalled Dillard.[1][2][3]
Recall vote
Steve Dillard recall, 2024
Steve Dillard lost the Seaside City Council Ward 1 recall election on July 31, 2024.
Recall Vote |
% |
Votes |
|||
| ✖ | Yes |
63.5
|
316 | ||
No |
36.5
|
182 | |||
Total Votes |
498 | ||||
|
|
Recall supporters
R.J. Marx filed the recall petition on behalf of a group called Freedom to Read Seaside. Recall organizers initiated the effort after Dillard proposed changes to the Seaside Public Library's policies and procedures that would restrict access to some library materials for minors without parental authorization and modify the existing reconsideration process for challenged items.[1][4]
Marx has said, "It’s a national movement, he’s adopted it. And for whatever reason, it does seem to be something that’s happening around the country. And what’s really alarming, I think, is that it puts the local community in the position of upholding the law and American values and the First Amendment and our Constitution overall."[1]
Recall opponents
Dillard did not respond to a request for comment from The Astorian regarding the recall effort. Regarding the changes he proposed to the Seaside Public Library's policies and procedures, he wrote:[4]
| “ |
Last fall, I was approached by residents who had concerns about the content of books for children in our library. After learning from city staff about our library reconsideration process, I informed these residents of the process; some of these residents then submitted requests to the library for the reconsideration of two books from the children’s section. These requests were reviewed by the Library Board on January 2nd in accordance with our policy – the requests to remove the books were denied and the books were left on the shelves. During that time I began exploring this topic and realized that it has been discussed more and more nationally in recent years, and it is now a local concern. I researched books in the children’ sections of our library, including books that were being promoted by our library to teenagers on social media. I chose three of these books to read and I realized that not only are we providing sexually explicit books to minors, but we are promoting them as well. Out of all of the things that our library does so well I believe this practice is wrong, so I am asking our City Council to consider whether we should continue to provide sexually explicit material to minors in our library or whether we should impose some restrictions on this access. [5] |
” |
Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in Oregon
No specific grounds are required for recall in Oregon. To get the recall on the ballot, supporters must collect signatures equal to 15% of the votes cast in the last regular gubernatorial election in the relevant jurisdiction. Signatures must be collected within 90 days.[6]
To trigger a recall election for Dillard, organizers needed to collect 112 signatures.[1]
Recall context
- See also: Ballotpedia's Recall Report
Ballotpedia covers recall efforts across the country for all state and local elected offices. A recall effort is considered official if the petitioning party has filed an official form, such as a notice of intent to recall, with the relevant election agency.
The chart below shows how many officials were included in recall efforts from 2012 to 2024 as well as how many of them defeated recall elections to stay in office and how many were removed from office in recall elections.
See also
- Ballotpedia's Recall Report
- Seaside, Oregon
- Recall campaigns in Oregon
- Political recall efforts, 2024
- City council recalls
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 The Astorian, "Recall petition filed against Seaside city councilor over potential book restrictions," May 20, 2024
- ↑ Clatsop County, Oregon government website, "July 31, 2024 - Special Recall Election for City of Seaside Councilor, Ward 1," accessed June 27, 2024
- ↑ Seaside Signal, "Recall holds against Seaside city councilor over potential age restrictions at library," August 13, 2024
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 City of Seaside, "City Council Agenda Monday, April 22, 2024," accessed June 4, 2024
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Oregon Secretary of State, "Recall Manual," accessed October 17, 2023
