Steve Youngdahl recall, Lake Pend Oreille School Board, Idaho (2014)
| Lake Pend Oreille School Board recall |
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| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2014 Recalls in Idaho Idaho recall laws School board recalls Recall reports |
An effort to recall Lake Pend Oreille School Board Chairman Steve Youngdahl in Idaho was launched in October 2013. The recall question failed to reach the ballot because organizers did not meet petition requirements established by state law.[1]
The Bonner County Clerk initially approved the question for the ballot in December 2013. A review by the Idaho Secretary of State's office in January 2014 concluded that recall petitions must be submitted at one time.[2]
Criminal charges were brought against two Bonner County officials in connection to improper handling of signature submissions for this recall. In May 2015, one of those cases was resolved by a pretrial settlement. The trial brought accusations of partisanship in the investigative efforts.[3][4]
Recall supporter arguments
The recall effort was triggered because of data that Youngdahl used to propose a policy to allow district staff members to carry guns. The study, according to supporters of the recall, was "conducted by a politically-biased individual without consideration for proper academic rigor."[5][6][7]
The recall was launched by Tom Bokowy, Jacinda Bokowy, Stephanie Aitken and Sandpoint City Council candidate Bill Aitken.[6]
Steve Youngdahl's response
Youngdahl stated he was simply bringing an issue suggested by residents to the school board's attention. He also argued the data used was supported by an unnamed Homeland Security associate. Youngdahl noted that he never forced the proposal on the board.[5]
Criminal charges
Bonner County Clerk Ann Dutson-Sater (D) and Deputy Clerk Konrad Wurm faced criminal charges that were speculated to be related to signature submissions in this recall effort. While the charges were sealed until the initial court appearance by the defendants, Dutson-Sater stated that she allowed a recall backer to sign-off on the petitions without knowing that he had not gathered all the signatures. She also indicated that she believed the investigation came about after Youngdahl's supporters sought charges against one of the recall supporters.[3]
In May 2015, it was announced that a pretrial settlement had been made in her case. Scheduled to be tried for charges of subornation of perjury later that month, the settlement avoided a trail. The exact terms of the settlement were not available at that time, but it was stated that Dutson-Sater would have criminal charges on her record as a result.[4]
Dutson-Sater had lost her re-election bid against Michael Rosedale (R) in the general election on November 4, 2014. She was the last Democrat holding office in the county at that time. She and her supporters postulated that she would not have been the focus of the criminal investigation if she had been a Republican, with Dutson-Sater going so far as to say, "The fact that I was the only Democrat made me a target."[4]
Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in Idaho
A minimum of 105 signatures were required to trigger a recall election. Recall organizers submitted a total of 107 signatures to the County Clerk in late December 2013. The county clerk initially approved the signatures after organizers submitted petitions over multiple days. The Idaho Secretary of State ruled in January 2014 that state law requires petitions to be submitted in a single batch. Supports of the recall have noted that they will not pursue another recall drive against Youngdahl.[2]
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ KREM, "School Chairman who suggested gun policy refuses to resign," January 8, 2014 (dead link)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Bonner County Daily Bee, "Procedural error ends Youngdahl recall drive," January 17, 2014
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Hagadone News Network, "Bonner clerk, deputy face charges," September 10, 2014
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 CDAPress.com, "Pretrial pact resolves perjury case," May 20, 2015
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Bonner County Daily Bee, "Organizers: Recall effort making headway," October 30, 2013
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Bonner County Daily Bee, "School gun proposal prompts recall drive," October 19, 2013
- ↑ My News Network, "Idaho Parents Seek Recall Of School Official Behind Plan To Arm Teachers," October 22, 2013
