How Can Voters Recall Elected Officials?

There is currently a petition circulating in Long Beach to qualify the recall of Mayor Robert Garcia. How can a recall be conducted? What laws apply? Let’s discuss.

Q. Why can voters recall an elected official?

A. Recall is the power of the voters to remove an elective officer. (Cal.Const., Art. II, Secs. 13-19; Elections Code § 11000 et seq.) The State Constitution requires that the Legislature must provide for the recall of local officers. This provision, however, does not affect counties and cities whose charters provide for recall. (Cal. Const., Art. II, Sec. 19)

Q. Since Long Beach is a charter city, what law applies?

A. The City Charter states: Section 2000. – POWERS RESERVED TO THE PEOPLE. 

The powers of the initiative, referendum and recall of elected city officers are hereby reserved to the voters of the city. The provisions of the Elections Code of the State of California, governing the exercise of the powers of initiative and referendum in cities and governing the exercise of the power of recall of municipal officers, shall apply to the exercise of those powers in the city insofar as such provisions are not in conflict with the provisions of this Charter.

Q. What does the State Elections Code require to start a petition?

A. Preliminary Steps. The Notice of Intention Proponents begin the recall of an elective officer, including any officer appointed in lieu of election or to fill a vacancy, by the service, filing and publication or posting of a notice of intention to circulate a recall petition. (Elections Code § 11006)

Serve and File the Notice of Intention. A copy of the notice of intention must be served by personal delivery or by certified mail on the officer sought to be recalled. In addition, the original of the notice of intention, along with an affidavit of the time and manner of service, must be filed with the local elections official within seven days of being served.

Publish the Notice of Intention. A copy of the notice of intention (including addresses and signatures) must be published at the proponents’ expense at least once in a newspaper of general circulation. The publication need not include the text of Elections Code section 11023.

Obtain and File Proof of Publication. The proponents must file proof of publication at the same time that they file two blank copies of the proposed recall petition with the local elections official. Proof of publication is obtained from the newspaper publisher after the notice of intention appears in print. (Elections Code § 11042)

Answer of Recallee. Within seven days after the filing of the notice of intention, the officer sought to be recalled may file with the local elections official an answer of not more than two hundred words.

Prepare the Recall Petition. The next step in the recall process for local officials requires the proponents to prepare the recall petition for circulation.

Declaration of Circulator. The circulator must personally affix their printed name and residence address and the specific dates of circulation of each petition section in the circulator’s affidavit. Preprinted dates, or generalized dates other than the particular range of dates on which the petition section was circulated, are not authorized. (Elections Code §§ 104, 11046)

Q. How many signatures are required to qualify a petition to recall?

A. Ten percent (10%) if the registration is 100,000 or above.

Q. What happens when signatures are brought to the city clerk?

A. Examination by the Elections Official. When proponents bring in the petition for filing, the elections official must count the number of signatures on it. If, from this examination the elections official determines that the number of signatures, on its face, equals or is in excess of the minimum number of signatures required, the elections official shall accept the petition for filing. The petition shall be deemed as filed on that date. Any petition not so filed must be returned to the proponents and is void for all purposes. (Elections Code § 11222)

Q. If the petition qualifies, when is the official recalled?

A. Notice of Recall Election. Within 14 days of receiving the certificate of sufficiency, the governing body must issue an order stating that an election will be held to determine whether or not the officer named in the petition shall be recalled. (Elections Code § 11240)

Election. The election shall be held not less than 88 nor more than 125 days after the issuance of the order, and if a regular or special election is to be held throughout the electoral jurisdiction of the officer sought to be recalled within such time period, the recall election shall be held on the same day and consolidated with the regular or special election. (Elections Code § 11242)

Q. What about campaign finance laws for recalls?

A. Campaign Finance Reporting. Both the recall proponents who organize to qualify a recall for the ballot as well as those who organize to oppose such a recall effort will have campaign disclosure and filing obligations under state law.

Q. Who replaces a recalled elected official?

A. Once the recall election is called, there will be a nomination period for candidates to file for election to that office. The question on the ballot will be: “Shall [name of officer sought to be recalled] be recalled (removed) from the office of [title of office]?” with the voter marking either “Yes” or “No” (§11320). Below the question will appear the names of the candidates who have filed to seek election to the office, in the event the recall is successful. Appropriately identified write-in spaces must also be provided (§11322). If the officer is recalled, the candidate receiving the greatest number of votes shall be elected to the remainder of the recalled officer’s term. There is no runoff election (§11385).

gerrie@beachcomber.news