Tom Borer and Allan Bentley recall, Antelope County, Nebraska (2019)
| Antelope County Board of Commissioners recall |
|---|
 |
| Officeholders |
Allen Bentley |
| Recall status |
| Recall election date |
| October 15, 2019 |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2019 Recalls in Nebraska Nebraska recall laws County commission recalls Recall reports |
Voters recalled chairman and District 5 commissioner Tom Borer and District 3 commissioner Allen Bentley from the Antelope County Board of Commissioners in an election on October 15, 2019.[1] The recall effort began in July 2019, when an affidavit to recall Borer was filed by Bethany Miller of Elgin, Nebraska, and a separate affidavit to recall Bentley was filed by Jack Allemang of Clearwater, Nebraska. The petitions accused the two commissioners of mismanaging and misappropriating county funds.[2][3][4] Both commissioners denied the allegations against them.[5]
Borer and Bentley were first elected in November 2018, and they took office in January 2019. Both commissioners defeated incumbents to win their seats.[6]
Recall vote
District 3
Allen Bentley recall, 2019
Allen Bentley lost the Antelope County Board of Commissioners District 3 recall election on October 15, 2019.
Recall Vote |
% |
Votes |
|||
| ✖ | Yes |
63.8
|
307 | ||
No |
36.2
|
174 | |||
Total Votes |
481 | ||||
|
|
District 5
Tom Borer recall, 2019
Tom Borer lost the Antelope County Board of Commissioners District 5 recall election on October 15, 2019.
Recall Vote |
% |
Votes |
|||
| ✖ | Yes |
64.3
|
337 | ||
No |
35.7
|
187 | |||
Total Votes |
524 | ||||
|
|
Recall supporters
The recall petitions accused Borer and Bentley of mismanaging and misappropriating county funds. The petitions described the use of funds spent on an outside attorney after an investigation by the Nebraska State Patrol as well as on unnecessary expenses and poorly-timed projects.[2][6]
Another reason for recall listed on the petition against Borer included, “mistreatment of elected officials, including waging public wars, refusing to allow them to speak and making unethical comments toward other officials.”[6]
According to the Norfolk Daily News, the petition against Bentley also accused him of "sending local constituents false information via text message and then blaming those messages on alcohol consumption."[2][4]
Recall opponents
Both Borer and Bentley denied the allegations listed in the recall petitions against them.[5]
Borer submitted the following statement against the recall on July 31, 2019:
| “ | All allegations against me are false, brought about by people with questionable motives. One commissioner cannot make policy or other decisions alone. There is discussion on topics and majority vote rules. The chairman is responsible for running orderly meetings and following the open meeting laws, all elected officials need to follow this law[7] | ” |
| —Tom Borer (2019)[5] | ||
Bentley responded to the recall effort by saying:
| “ | All allegations against me are false. No single commissioner makes any policy or financial decision, must always be majority vote. Investigation uncovered several thefts by county official; actually saved county thousands in back wages. This recall appears to be an attempt to undo recent election results, so by law, three people: county clerk, treasurer and attorney can hand pick new commissioners.[7] | ” |
| —Allen Bentley (2019)[5] | ||
Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in Nebraska
Antelope County Clerk Lisa Payne notarized the recall petitions on August 13, 2019. The recall election was held on October 15, 2019. Supporters needed to gather 203 signatures to recall Borer, while 135 signatures were needed to recall Bentley. The signature requirements represented 35 percent of the total ballots cast for each candidate during the general election on November 6, 2018.[2]
If the two commissioners are recalled, the positions will be filled by appointment. A three-member committee including the county clerk, county attorney, and county treasurer will fill the positions.[5]
See also
- Antelope County, Nebraska
- Recall campaigns in Nebraska
- Political recall efforts, 2019
- County commission recalls
External links
- Search Google News for this topic
- Antelope County Commissioners
- Antelope County Election Commissioner
Footnotes
- ↑ Herald-Standard, "Voters recall 2 Antelope County commissioners," October 16, 2019
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Norfolk Daily News, "Election date set for two Antelope County Commissioners," August 23, 2019
- ↑ Norfolk Daily News, "Two Antelope County commissioners face potential recall," July 9, 2019
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 The Recall Elections Blog, "Nebraska: Two Antelope Commissioners up for special election recall vote on October 15," accessed on August 27, 2019
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Norfolk Daily News, "Signatures turned in effort for Antelope County recall," August 13, 2019
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Norfolk Daily News, "Two Antelope County commissioners face potential recall," July 9, 2019
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
