Tagged: recall campaigns

Last year, voters recalled State Rep. Paul Scott (R-Grand Blanc). He was the first elected official to be recalled in Michigan since 1983.

But apparently that recall, and dozens of other recent attempts, were enough to spook legislators into making the process harder.

Michigan Gov. Snyder signed a bill into law yesterday that makes it harder for voters to recall elected officials.

The bills were initially sponsored by Republicans and Democrats, but as the Republicans in the state Legislature passed the controversial 'right-to-work' bills, Democrats accused the Republicans of rushing the changes through to protect themselves from recall campaigns.

If you're part of a group seeking to organize a recall, here are the five changes you'll have to consider when organizing a campaign:

Don't go calling the Republican-controlled state Legislature a lame-duck.

They were anything but, passing major legislation in the final days between the election and the end of the year.

We posted on the major legislation passed on the epic evenings of Thursday, December 6, and Tuesday December 11, but not on the entire lame duck.

Turns out, the Detroit News has that list.

Here's their wrap up of the major legislation that passed during the lame duck session.

And if you're unhappy with what they did, and are thinking of participating in a recall campaign or two, they've got that covered as well.

In their It's Just Politics segment, Michigan Radio's Zoe Clark and MPRN's Rick Pluta point out:

One of the final actions of the Republican-controlled Legislature was to make it much harder to recall elected officials. Recalls are among the retributions being plotted by labor in the face of right-to-work. This could be a bit of a game changer before that’s even started. That should have state Senator Partrick Colbeck, a Republican from a swing district in western Wayne County, breathing a little easier. Colbeck was a big backer of right-to-work and is now considered a top recall target by Democrats.

A recall petition against Michigan Senate Majority Leader Randy Richardville (R-Monroe) got the stamp of approval from Monroe County election officials.

The Associated Press reports County Clerk Sharon Lemasters says the vote at the petition clarity hearing was 2-1.

Organizers first started their recall effort against Richardville last year. That petition language was approved, but the signature gathering effort stalled.

This past May, a second petition against Richardville was rejected for vague and unclear language.

Now, organizers hope the third time is the charm. They're targeting Richardville, in part for his support of a new Michigan-Ontario bridge, according to the AP.

Richardville spokesman Matt Marsden says the approved language is "remarkably similar to the last two rejected recalls" and that the senator will review it with his lawyer.

UPDATE 7:35pm

Governor Snyder’s critics are once again launching a recall petition against him.

The petition drive organizers accuse the governor’s education and spending policies of “abusing children” and hurting Michigan in other ways during his time in office.

Geralyn Lasher is the governor’s spokeswoman.    She says voters know the governor can point to an improving economy during his time in office.

“I think they’re going to be far more focused on that than they will with the latest fringe group that comes up with a proposal," says Lasher.

The first recall petition drive against the governor fell well short of the 800 thousand signatures needed to put the recall on the ballot.  

ORIGINAL POST 5:59pm

A new recall effort against Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder is getting underway.

The group "Michigan Rising" said in a press release today they filed their petition language in Washtenaw County on March 26. They expect a hearing on whether or not the petition language will be accepted on April 9.

The last effort to recall Gov. Snyder failed to collect enough signatures to put the question on a ballot.

Past recall efforts against former Governors Jennifer Granholm and John Engler also failed.

MPRN's Rick Pluta reported "there's never been a successful recall campaign against a statewide elected official" in the state's history.

To put a recall question on the November ballot, 1 in 7 registered voters in Michigan would have to sign a petition. Organizers would need around 807,000 valid signatures in a three-month period.

It's a task Michigan Radio commentator Jack Lessenberry called "impossible" last year.

Impossible or not, Michigan Rising plans to hold a rally on May 5 at the Capitol in Lansing to kickoff their campaign.

Organizers in Michigan say they are buoyed by the success of the effort in Wisconsin to hold a special recall election against Gov. Scott Walker.

In their press release, Michigan Rising said recalling Gov. Snyder is akin to "slaying a dragon."

"We are trying to recall Governor Snyder again because you must chop the head off the beast and slay the dragon before you start rebuilding the village. If you try to rebuild the village while the dragon is still around, he will just burn the village to the ground again," said Marty
Townsend, Michigan Rising's Public Chair.

A petition seeking to recall Troy Mayor Janice Daniels has been approved.

More from MLive's, Jeff Wattrick:

A group seeking to recall Troy Mayor Janice Daniels won a split-decision victory yesterday as the Oakland County Election Commission approved recall language for a petition drive. That means organizers have 180 days to collect 7,985 signatures within a 90-day period to place the recall question on the ballot.

Daniels has angered some in her community for an anti-gay slur she made on her Facebook page prior to being mayor. Opponents of Daniels were also angered when Mayor Daniels rejected federal funding for a new transit center in Troy.

Wattrick writes that Daniels became a controversial figure the moment she took office:

At her inauguration, she refused to recite the traditional oath of office because she wouldn’t pledge to uphold Troy’s City Charter. Daniels dismissed Troy’s governing document as “whimsical.”

It's never been done before - a successful statewide recall of a sitting governor in Michigan.

To put a statewide recall on a ballot, 1 in 7 registered voters in Michigan would have to sign a petition.

It's a daunting task and, as we've been reporting here at Michigan Radio, the Committee to recall Governor Rick Snyder did not collect enough signatures to get a recall on the November ballot.

It's something political commentator Jack Lessenberry called "impossible" last April.

I called up Rick Pluta, Lansing Bureau Chief for the Michigan Public Radio Network, to talk about the challenging logistics of a statewide recall effort and about what the Committee to Recall Rick Snyder is doing now.

You can listen to our conversation here:

The committee essentially needs around 807,000 valid signatures within a 90-day period to get on a ballot.

The committee collected around 310,00 signatures for the months of May, June, and July - short of the target for the November ballot.

So now the committee is rolling the goal posts forward.

Organizers of the recall campaign against Republican state Representative Paul Scott say they will have enough petition signatures to hand in tomorrow to get the recall on the November ballot in Genesee County.

Bobbi Walton is a coordinator with the recall campaign. She says the recall of one lawmaker would send a message everyone working in the Capitol.

“For me personally it means that the residents in Michigan, when they see that their government has extended their reach , or disappointed them or lied to them, that they then have a law that allows them to come forward and correct the mistake and recall the person that is sitting in that chair.”

Walton says the recall question is also a referendum on Governor Rick Snyder’s job performance. Scott is the chairman of the House Education Committee.

The Michigan Education Association teachers union helped organize the petition drive against Scott.

Scott sponsored the recent changes in Michigan’s teacher tenure laws.