Confused about the recall process for Oakland? Read our explainer
Photo by mlinksva, http://flic.kr/p/b79eNB
As the bifurcated effort to recall Mayor Quan moves forward, Oaklanders may be wondering what deployment of this democratic exercise means for the city. The mayoral recall process is a lengthy one, governed by the California Elections Code, but a review of the legal code and insight from the Office of the City Clerk helps show the path ahead.
Two recall petitions are currently vying for primacy in Oakland: one promoted by Gene Hazzard and company, another by Greg Harland et al. The Hazzard petition was validated by the city clerk’s office on Dec. 7; Harland’s on Jan. 24, according to Assistant City Clerk Tamika Thomas.
Petition guidelines are detailed in the elections code and in Oakland, the city clerk determines approval. Once a petition is validated, proponents have 160 days to gather 19,811 signatures. The number of registered voters in the electoral jurisdiction (as most recently reported to the Secretary of State) determines the time allotment and signature minimum. In this case we’re dealing with registered Alameda County voters who reside in Oakland.
If recall proponents reach the signature minimum within 160 days, the petition then will be filed with the City Clerk’s office. The office will make a cursory assessment of the signatures and if the minimum is satisfied, the clerk accepts the petition for filing.
The Clerk’s office has 30 days, excluding weekends and holidays, to verify the signatures as prescribed by the elections code. If the petition is found to be sufficient, the Clerk will certify the results of the examination at the next City Council meeting.
Within 14 days of the City Council receiving the city clerk’s certificate of sufficiency, which lists, among other things, the number of valid and disqualified signatures, the Council must schedule the date of the recall election. By law, the election must be held between 88 and 125 days of the City Council’s order. If a regular election is scheduled within this period then the recall is consolidated with it, otherwise a special recall election must be held.
On the ballot, voters then would be asked to vote yes or no as to if the elected official should be recalled and to select, from the nominated candidates, a successor in the case that a majority supports the recall. This successor would serve the remainder of the official's term.
The estimated timeline for the Hazzard petition is as follows: Petition approved Dec. 7; petition submitted with signatures by May 15; City Clerk validates or rejects petition by June 25; Council must set the date for the recall election by July 9; and election must be set between Oct. 5 and Nov. 12.
The estimated timeline for the Harland petition is as follows: Petition approved Jan. 24; petition submitted with signatures by July 2; City Clerk validates or rejects petition by Aug. 14; City Council must set the date for the recall election by Aug. 28; and election must be set between Nov. 24 and Dec. 31.
Story Features
Environment
Food
Daily Image
Recent comments
Development
Identity
Arts & Education
Join Our Mailing List
Sign up for Oakland freebies, discounts & exclusive stories 2X a month.
Pro bono web design grant provided by TechScouts
Vanessa, you corrected the biggest piece of misinformation that Quan supporters have been spreading:
A recall = an expensive special election.
A SPECIAL ELECTION WILL NOT BE NEEDED.
Recall comittees are allowed to submit their signatures earlier than the deadline set by the Clerk. The only restriction is that all the signatures for a particular petition must be submitted at the same time.
The Harland et al petition, which I call the Recall Quan Now petition after the committee's name, expects to submit it's signatures sufficiently before the July deadline for it to be scheduled for the regular Nov 6 election.
On Friday KRON4 news quoted the City Clerk saying that a special election would not be required for either petiition.
I wouldn't say that the Clerk will only give a "cursory assessment" of the signatures. The Clerk might have missed the forest for the trees when it examined the Gene Hazzard petition and overlooked its publication defect, but the Clerk is extremely carefull on checking details like signatures.
The state guidelines allows the Clerk to use statistical sampling to verify signatures. If the error rate is excessive the Clerk has to increase the sample size. The Clerk will compare every signature in her sample to the election records for name, address, and actual signature.
Recalls are often litigated over very small details. Signatures are commonly examined one by one by the parties.
While you are correct that state law specifies that a simple pluarality will pick the successor to Mayor Quan, you should mention that the City Attorney has announced she will be ruling on whether the city's RCV ranked choice voting trumps the state on this. It is not a settled or clear cut issue.
Len Raphael, Temescal
(speaking only for myself as a resident and not in my capacity as Treasurer of the Committee to Recall Mayor Quan Now or on behalf of that committee)
Hi Len
Len, could you kindly provide the link to the Jan 27, KRON4 news on City Clerk's statement. I cannot find it and I listened to the whole web broadcast of that day.
Your statement contradict Mark Morodomi, Oakland supervising attorney's statement at the Tribute-League of Women Voter Recall Information Forum of Jan 25.
He said, the Greg Harland et al. petition with July 12 signature gathering deadline, will have a Dec. 2012 to Jan 2013 election which will be a special election, causing $. There was no mention whether the City Clerk's office can physically or legally speed up the procedure to have it be squeezed into the Nov. general election.
I think, these four things must happen before we can avoid a million dollar election:
"Committee to Recall Mayor Quan" publicly and legally give up the rights to the July 12 signature gathering deadline,
the city attorney's office rule that giving up of this right as legal and proper,
the city attorney's office rule that the city clerk's office can legally speed up the process.
the clerk's office is able to speed up the process.
No one officially has promised or even suggested any of these things will happen. Voters should be given these information. Anything else would be dishonest.
The mechanics of the recall is anything but common sense. The absurdity of this all is that Mayor Jean Quan's term will be tested base on majority 50% vote while the successor is to be voted in by plurality.
For Mayor Jean Quan's supporters, that means your vote will not be counted becasue Mayor Jean Quan's name will not be on the ballot as a mayoral choice.
For those interested, this is the link to the Tribute - League of Women's Voters Oakland recall information forum: http://www.contracostatimes.com/bay-area-news/ci_19818987
Len: KRON4 on the recall
The reporter does state as fact that a Nov 6th election is doable. He does not give his source for that.
Leslie: “Your statement contradicts Mark Morodomi, Oakland supervising attorney's statement at the Tribute-League of Women Voter Recall Information Forum of Jan 25. …
He said, the Greg Harland et al. petition with July 12 signature gathering deadline, will have a Dec. 2012 to Jan 2013 election which will be a special election, causing $. There was no mention whether the City Clerk's office can physically or legally speed up the procedure to have it be squeezed into the Nov. general election.”
Len: If that’s what Assistant City Attorney Mark Morodomi said then yes I’m contradicting him. Mark Morodomi should have explained that July 2 (corrected on 2/5/12 from July 12) is the latest date for submission of the Recall Mayor Quan Now petition, not the only possible date. No one is expecting any city official to do anything faster than legally mandated.
The Recall Mayor Quan Now committee will speed up and do its best to submit its petition in early June so that the recall can get scheduled for Nov 6th. We certainly don’t expect the city council give up their month long paid vacation in August. We are not depending on any city official to work any faster than required by law.
Leslie: “For Mayor Jean Quan's supporters, that means your vote will not be counted because Mayor Jean Quan's name will not be on the ballot as a mayoral choice.”
Len: You neither know your history of the Progressive Movement nor understand direct democracy.There is no justification for giving an incumbent two chances to beat a recall. You might have noticed from living in Oakland how incumbents always have a built in advantage.