Non-recall op-ed on Ousting the Speaker

Here's an op-ed I wrote for The Week on the Republicans long history of removing their House leader.

Alabama: New legislation proposed on adopting recall

I've written on this specific proposal before. The recall law is proposed by a Democrat, and doesn't appear to have much chance of passage. It would require 25% of turnout, petitioners would have 90 days to get the signatures, and it would be a judicial recall or malfeasance standard.

AP story on the year in recalls

Here, with my comments.

North Dakota: Williston School Board member discuss recall

Williston School Board member Katie Peterson, discussing the issues of the recall

Colorado: 400 signatures gathered to recall three Evergreen Fire Protection District board members

Petitioners are claiming 400 signatures to recall three Evergreen Fire Protection District Board members, vice president Charlie Simons, secretary Jeff deDisse and treasurer David Christensen. Petitioners need 300 per board member.

The issue is a vote to build a fire training building, which residents say is inappropriate in aresidential and commercial neighborhood

Politico on the year in recalls

Here's an article in Politico discussing the 168 recalls.

Washington: Two Senators flip the chamber

Here's another article on the two Democratic Senators who pushed the Republicans into the majority. Here's my previous mention of the past recall of a state Senator there.

The Year in Recalls -- 168 recalls in 2012; 509 petitions taken out (updated numbers -- 507 taken out; 166 recalls)

Update: I had two recalls that should not have been counted in 2012 -- so the numbers should be 507 attempts and 166 recalls. 

As it is this blog's second year, we are now looking at our second recap, and the number are pretty impressive. In 2012, there were at least 168 recalls in 93 different jurisdictions. Here's my article in The Week examining the phenomena.

This is an increase from last year, when there were 151 recalls. This year, I also compiled a list of how many times recall petitions were reported to have been taken out -- 509 times. There were also numerous reported recall threats, but I never saw a follow-through, so I didn't include those.

I should point out that I am fairly certain that there are almost certainly recalls that I missed, so the 168/509 numbers should be seen as a floor, rather than a ceiling.

Despite the fact that the single most noteworthy recall -- Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker -- failed to remove the official, as a whole, the recalls were extremely successful. 108 officials were bounced, with 82 being kicked out, and 26 resigning before the recall took place. As I pointed out last year, this fact is especially striking compared to the fact that the incumbent reelection rate in the US is at least over 75%.

To answer the biggest question I receive, I do not breakdown the recalls by party. This is simply because most of the recalls are on the local level, where the position is elected on a nonpartisan basis, and it is not readily apparent which party the official belongs to. Additionally, when there is a partisan position, the party label is frequently a misleading way of judging the recall, as many are not based on D v. R partisan motivations.

If you would look at the history, especially at the state legislative level where party is most obvious, you would see both parties are not shy about using recalls (for example of the 14 state legislative recalls from 1981-2008, most were launched against Democrats, and ethics played very little role in those recalls).

That being said, I would say that the majority of recalls that had a partisan basis (and it is a very small minority of the 168 and the 509) to them in 2012 were launched by Democrats or Democratic-supporting groups. The reason for that is simple -- recalls are generally used by the group that is not in office. The Democrats did very poorly in the 2010 elections. 

Some other interesting facts:

• Recalls were held (or an official resigned in the face of a recall) in 20 states and the District of Columbia;
• Since 2011, 25 states and DC have held recalls
• The state with the most recalls was once again Michigan. Since the state changed its recall laws, we'll see if that holds up.
• The only state level recalls bin 2012 were in Wisconsin -- the Governor, the Lieutenant Governor and four state Senators.
• 29 mayors faced recalls -- many of these mayors were elected as part of the city council, so the votes were not city-wide
• The reasons for recalls are all over the map. As regular readers of the blog know, I am very dismissive of the idea that the economic downturn is wholly to blame for the recall explosion. In fact, technology is playing a very large role in the expansion of the recall.

Recalls continue to face barriers from administrative or judicial officials:

• 22 times an agency or election commission prevented the recall from getting on the ballot (for reasons that did not include a failure to gain enough signatures.
• 22 other times, the judiciary rejected the recall (most prominently in El Paso, Texas).
• In one instance, in Holy Cross Alaska, the city council simply refused to schedule the recall. 

Despite the criticism of the recall, it continues to expand.

• Five localities adopted the recall in 2012.
• One locality, College Station, Texas, became the first jurisdiction that I know of, to change their recall from a political recall to a judicial recall or a malfeasance standard.
• Michigan's legislature adopted a new law that may significantly curtail the use of the recall in the state. This came at the same time as their adoption of a Right to Work law. It should be noted that the recall changes were not approved by voters -- it would have been interesting to see how voters would have felt about the changes. As I note in The Week:

Following the Walker recall campaign, there was talk of recalls facing a backlash. Pundits were quick to cite a Wisconsin exit poll that showed 60 percent of voters wanted to limit the use of the recall to malfeasance or incompetence. Another 10 percent of voters wanted to eliminate the recall altogether. However, all the talk around that poll had one major flaw: 70 percent of voters might have touted opposition to the use of the recall, but that didn't stop 47 percent of voters from casting ballots to kick Scott Walker out of office.

The reasons for the recalls this year span the spectrum. The Wisconsin recalls were the most prominent, but there were plenty of others that received notice. Firing of city managers and police chiefs were very popular issues. The Fullerton, California recalls were very well followed. Others included the Mayor of Troy, Michigan, a big tea party supporter who was targeted for, among other things, some anti-gay comments.

Some of the more noteworthy ones including extramartial affairs by city council members, opposing another member's appointment of his girlfriend to the village council, trashing a hotel room, one launched by the wife of a losing candidate and using Meth.  And for movie buffs, the Mayor of Truth and Consequences, New Mexico survived a recall. Even the ghost of Belle Starr couldn't help as there is now a new huckleberry in town: the mayor of Tombstone, Arizona was bounced and replaced by the owner of Johnny Ringo's bar.

Of course some times, the recalls failed to get on the ballot. Noteworthy among these was a Moreno School Board member who has been indicted on 11 counts, including rape, pimping, pandering and attempted murder. Petitioners simply didn't get the signatures.

In the face of the "Bermuda Triangle" nature of the recall, with this continue? No reason to think it won't. There have already been plenty of recalls scheduled for 2013, including three Council members in Poland, Maine who are facing a recall vote on January 3.

North Dakota: Two Williston School Board members targeted in recall

Two Williston school board members, Monica Chamley and Katie Peterson, are facing recall petitions due to complaints about the superintendent. No word on how many signatures are needed to get it on the ballot.

Arizona: Three Bouse School Board Members voted out in November recall

A couple of stragglers in this year's recall total: Three Bouse School Board members, Virginia Beulke, Melissa Williams and Joyce Tucker, were all kicked out of office on November 6. The issue appears to be a vote to merger Bouse school district with Quartzsite.


Beulke lost 43.30-56.70%. Tucker lost 47.37-51.75%, and Williams lost 37.99-62.01%.

Wisconsin: La Crosse Council President recall now on the ballot

Another surprising turn in La Crosse council president Audrey Kader recall. After tossing out a large number of signatures, petitioners were able to correct the errors (by adding in proper addresses) . They now have 169 valid signatures (they needed 158).

Arkansas: Fort Smith City Director-elect facing recall threat before taking office

Fort Smith City Director-elect Keith Lau, who hasn't even started in office yet, is facing a recall threat over an animal control ordinance. The former Chair of the Animal Services Advisory Board has threatened the recall. The Chair resigned on July 18 after sending a "lengthy and sarcastic e-mail" to a separate director

Petitioners can't try for the recall until Lau has served six months. Petitioner also claims that they woul need 237 signatures (35% of turnout from the primary), though it sounds like the actual number is 2,048 (due to the fact that the last general election for the seat was in 1996).

Utah: State Rep propose recall law, Salt Lake City Tribune cautiously backs idea

Utah doesn't have a recall law, but the Salt Lake Tribune is calling for one. This is due to the Brigham City Mayor Dennis Fife recall discussion (he had an affair with a woman he was counseling).  State Rep. Lee Perry is set to propose a recall law.

Michigan: Opinion piece praising the recall changes

Here

Michigan: Jackson Mayor facing recall petitions

Jackson Mayor Martin Griffin is facing a recall petition (language still to be approved). The issues appear to be his support of the city’s stormwater ordinance fee and his support for a payment upon the resignation of the former city Manager.

Michigan: Recall law signed into law by Governor

Michigan's Governor has signed into law the bill limiting recalls. The most prominent provisions are making the recall a one-step process, the moving the signature gathering timeframe from 90 to 60 days and limiting recalls to only Election Days in May and November. It would also prevent recalls in the first and last year of a Senators term (and six month each for Reps), and mandate "factual" charges, a very unclear term.

For some analysis of the provisions (I'll look at the law in further depth when I have some time), see here and here

Virginia: Loudoun County Supervisor facing threats of a recall trial

Loudoun County Supervisor Eugene Delgaudio is facing removal threats. The Arlington Commonwealth’s attorney office are investigating Delgaudio for allegations he misused county resources for political fundraising and campaigning.

Chairman of the LCDC Evan Macbeth said:

“Virginia does not have recall elections, but recall trials. As such, we’ve evaluated options, including a recall petition, in light of the law and the fact that there is a legal process and investigation underway now.”

I don't know the last time a recall trial was used in the state, so it would be interesting to see one.

New Mexico: Truth of Consequences Mayor survives recall vote

Truth or Consequences Mayor John Mulcahy survived a recall vote (perhaps the last of the year), despite losing 332-273 (54.8% in favor of removal). In order to ward off the possibly unfair advantage of a special election, New Mexico law requires that the votes in favor of a recall equal or exceed the number the official received in the election.

Petitioners needed 374 votes.
Mulcahy, 52, receives $550 per month as mayor.

One candidate for mayor claim that the recall was about Mulcahy's not supporting a city-sponsored site for a spaceport visitor center, for his ties to several influential developers, and for City Hall’s push to build a waste transfer station.

Wisconsin: Schools Superintendent, who signed Walker recall petitions, facing election

Wisconsin schools superintendent Tony Evers, who signed a petition to recall Scott Walker is now facing a reelection race. Walker is officially undecided in the non-partisan race.

Oregon: Baker School Board members consider suit against recall petitioner for cost of election

Following the Baker School Board members recall in which the board chair Lynne Burroughs and member Mark Henderson both survived the vote, the school board is now considering a lawsuit to sue the petitioner to collect $10,000 for the cost of the recall. This suit sounds like a guaranteed loser.

The board claims that the petitioner claimed false reasons in her recall statement on the ballot.

The state statute deals with a candidate or political committee publishing falsities “with knowledge or with reckless disregard” according to the first subsection of the statute.

“Any candidate or political committee aggrieved by a violation of this section shall have a right of action against the person alleged to have committed the violation,” the law states in subsection 5.

The district has 30 days after the election to take action, the statute stipulates.