Ballotpedia's Mid-Year Recall Report (2023)

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Recall elections in 2023: Mid-year report
Statistics
227 targeted officials 149 recall efforts
Notable recalls
Oregon House of Representatives Arizona State Senate Richland School District, Washington Orange Unified School District, California Cochise County, Arizona

June 21, 2023
By Ballotpedia staff

From January 1 through June 21, 2023, Ballotpedia covered 149 recall efforts against 227 officials. These figures represent a small decline from 2022, when we tallied 152 recall efforts against 240 officials by June. In comparison, the highest number of recall efforts we have tracked by mid-year was 189 in 2016. The lowest was 72 in 2019.

Unlike 2022 when school board officials drew more recall petitions than any other group by mid-year, city council officials have been subject to more recall attempts of any officeholder type in 2023. City council officials ultimately drew more recall petitions than other officeholder types by the end of 2022, and so far in 2023, they account for 46% of recall targets across all office types.

As of June, the state with the highest number of officials targeted in recall efforts is Michigan with 71. Michigan also had the highest number of officials targeted for recall in 2022. The next two states are California with 28 and Colorado with 24. However, the state with the most recall attempts relative to its population is North Dakota with 0.9 recalls per 100,000 residents. Michigan follows North Dakota with 0.71 recalls per 100,000 residents.

Notable recalls across the first half of 2023 included the following:

• An effort to recall Oregon state Rep. Paul Holvey (D) was initiated on May 22, 2023. Proponents of the recall effort criticize Holvey for multiple reasons, including his lack of support for House Bill 3183, his vote on a 2019 bill that reduced pension benefits, and his failure to secure pandemic benefits for grocery workers.

• An effort to recall Arizona state Sen. Justine Wadsack (R) was initiated on May 8, 2023, by Rolande Baker. Proponents of the recall effort criticize Wadsack over her sponsorship of proposed legislation that includes provisions to prohibit books on gender issues, establish a felony offense for taking children to drag shows, eliminate the State Bar requirement for Arizona lawyers (transferring licensing authority to the Supreme Court), and homeless issues.

• Recall elections against three of the five members of the Richland School District school board in Washington are being held on August 1, 2023. Recall supporters said that the board members violated the Open Public Meetings Act; violated district policies, procedures, and code of ethics; and voted to make masks optional while a statewide mask requirement was in place.

• An effort to recall two of the seven members of the Orange Unified School District Board of Education in California began in May 2023. Recall supporters did not agree with the board's 4-3 vote in a special meeting on January 5, 2023, to fire the district's superintendent and place the district’s assistant superintendent of education on paid leave pending a curriculum and academic audit.

• An attempt to recall Cochise County District 1 Supervisor Tom Crosby in Arizona began in January 2023. The recall effort failed after supporters did not collect the required number of signatures by the May 3 deadline. Supporters of the recall argued that Crosby attempted to obstruct the county's election procedures by refusing to certify thousands of ballots following the 2022 election. They also argued that he improperly advocated for the hand count of ballots and needlessly cost taxpayer money.

Statistics

Ballotpedia covers recall efforts across the country for all state and local elected offices. Two individuals were included in multiple recall efforts in 2023. Their statuses for each effort are included in the statistics below.

In the first half of 2023, Ballotpedia covered 149 recall efforts against 227 officials. Efforts against 17 officials were successful, removing them from office via a recall election. Twelve officials resigned after recall efforts were started against them, five were put on the ballot but defeated the recall to stay in office, and the recall efforts against 70 officials failed to make the ballot. Recall elections for another 21 officials have been scheduled but not held as of this report's publication, and 104 officials face recall efforts that are still underway.

The chart below details the results of recall efforts that have been resolved, either by reaching the ballot, failing to reach the ballot, or due to a resignation.

Recall elections removed 7.49% of officials included in recall efforts so far in 2023. This was a slightly lower percentage when compared to the same time period in 2022 (8.33%), but it was higher than 2021 (3.42%). The mid-points of those three years all had more officials targeted for recall than the same time period from 2017 to 2020.

The chart below shows how many officials were included in recall efforts at the mid-year point from 2014 through 2023 as well as how many of them had been removed from office in recall elections at that time.

City council members drew more recall petitions than any other group in 2023, following a pattern established between 2016 and 2020 and re-established in 2022. In 2021 and the first half of 2022, school board members drew the most recall petitions, but by the end of the year in 2022, city council members had been included in more recall petitions than school board members.

A total of 105 city council or town board members faced recall campaigns in 2023, while 51 school board members faced recall campaigns, the second-most. Recalls were also sought for 28 mayors and vice mayors. At state-level government, two state legislators faced recall efforts. A breakdown of the various recall targets is displayed in the chart below:

Targets by state

Ballotpedia covered a total of 149 recall efforts against 227 officials in 27 states. Michigan led the way in officials targeted for recall with 71 in 2023. California followed with 28, and Colorado came in third with 24. Michigan also had the most officials targeted for recall in 2018 and 2022. From 2016 to 2017 and 2019 to 2021, California had the most officials targeted for recall. To view the number of recall targets in a particular state, hover your mouse cursor over that state below:

When adjusted for state population using the U.S. Census Bureau's July 2022 population estimates, North Dakota becomes the recall leader with 0.90 recalls per 100,000 residents. It is followed by Michigan (0.71 recalls per 100,000 residents) and Colorado (0.41 recalls per 100,000 residents).

Notable recalls

Paul Holvey recall, Oregon House of Representatives

See also: Paul Holvey recall, Oregon House of Representatives (2023)

Rep. Paul Holvey (D)

An effort to recall Oregon state Rep. Paul Holvey (D) was initiated on May 22, 2023. The recall initiative is being led by the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 555, with Nathan Erne named as the chief petitioner on the recall petition. Supporters of the recall have 90 days—or no later than August 21, 2023—to collect 4,598 signatures to require a recall election.

Proponents of the recall effort criticize Holvey for multiple reasons, including his lack of support for House Bill 3183, his vote on a 2019 bill that reduced pension benefits, and his failure to secure pandemic benefits for grocery workers. Cannabis employers would have been prohibited from impeding employee unionization efforts if House Bill 3183 had been enacted.

Regarding the recall, Local 555 President Dan Clay conveyed in a statement, "Oregon workers are calling for the removal of Representative Holvey after his repeated attacks on their livelihoods. He has shown that his allegiance lies with large corporations, not with Oregonians. Voters in Holvey’s district deserve a representative who will prioritize their well-being, and they will have an opportunity to express their dissatisfaction with Holvey’s representation."

In response to the recall effort, Holvey said, "It’s quite surprising that UFCW Local 555 would take such retaliatory action over a bill (HB 3183) that failed, especially a bill that most people with knowledge of labor law would agree is preempted by the National Labor Relations Act and federal law. It would be a disservice to the people of Oregon or union members to advance such a questionable proposal and likely put the state in costly litigation." According to a legal opinion issued in April, legislative attorneys expressed that HB 3183 would conflict with federal labor laws.

Holvey was elected to the state House in 2004. He was re-elected in 2022 with 85% of the vote.

Justine Wadsack recall, Arizona State Senate

See also: Justine Wadsack recall, Arizona State Senate (2023)

Sen. Justine Wadsack (R)

An effort to recall Arizona state Sen. Justine Wadsack (R) was initiated on May 8, 2023, by Rolande Baker. Supporters of the recall have 120 days—or no later than September 5, 2023—to collect 30,981 signatures to require a recall election.

Proponents of the recall effort criticize Wadsack over her sponsorship of four bills. The four bills are SB 1435, SB 1700, SB 1698, and SB 1413. The proposed legislation includes provisions to prohibit books on gender issues, establish a felony offense for taking children to drag shows, eliminate the State Bar requirement for Arizona lawyers (transferring licensing authority to the Supreme Court), and homeless issues.

In response to the announcement of the recall, Wadsack stated, "To be honest, this recall effort, and the individuals supporting it, lack any credibility. I have no reason to be even remotely worried."

Wadsack was elected to the state Senate in 2022. She defeated Mike Nickerson (D) in the general election with 51% of the vote.

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Richland School District recall, Washington

See also: Richland School District recall, Washington (2022-2023)

Recall elections against three of the five members of the Richland School District school board in Washington are being held on August 1, 2023. M. Semi Bird, Audra Byrd, and Kari Williams are on the ballot.

Recall supporters said that the board members violated the Open Public Meetings Act; violated district policies, procedures, and code of ethics; and voted to make masks optional while a statewide mask requirement was in place. On their website, recall supporters said, "This recall is not about masks nor is it a partisan issue. The recall is about elected officials being held responsible for unlawful actions they took while in office."

All three board members denied any wrongdoing. Williams said that she believed no laws were broken when the board voted to make masks optional. She said the board received medical and legal advice before taking the vote and that the state's mask requirement ended a few weeks later.

The state of Washington requires specific grounds to be met for a recall to move forward. Those specific grounds are "acts of malfeasance or misfeasance while in office or violation of oath of office." The Benton County Superior Court approved the recall petitions for circulation on May 11, 2022. The three members filed an appeal against that decision with the Washington Supreme Court. The state supreme court ruled on February 9, 2023, that four of the recall charges were factually and legally sufficient, allowing the petitions to be circulated. Recall supporters had to submit 5,887 signatures against Bird, 5,822 against Byrd, and 5,176 against Williams.

Orange Unified School District recall, California

See also: Rick Ledesma and Madison Miner recall, Orange Unified School District, California (2023)

An effort to recall two of the seven members of the Orange Unified School District Board of Education in California began in May 2023. Trustee Area 4 representative Madison Klovstad Miner and Trustee Area 7 representative Rick Ledesma were named in the notices of intent to recall. To get the recalls on the ballot, supporters had to file 13,046 signatures per board member with the Orange County Registrar of Voters. The signatures against Miner were due on November 9, 2023, and the signatures against Ledesma were due on November 13, 2023.

Recall supporters did not agree with the board's 4-3 vote in a special meeting on January 5, 2023, to fire the district's superintendent and place the district’s assistant superintendent of education on paid leave pending a curriculum and academic audit. Ledesma and Miner voted in favor of the superintendent's firing along with John Ortega and Angie Schlueter-Rumsey. The board did not give a reason for the decision.

Ledesma was re-elected to a four-year term on the board on November 8, 2022. He defeated two opponents with 51.5% of the vote. Miner was elected to the board in the same election, defeating incumbent Kathryn A. Moffat with 50.2% of the vote. Both Ledesma and Miner ran as part of a candidate slate in 2022 that pledged to support charter school parents and be independent of the teachers union. The other two members of the candidate slate did not win election.

Tom Crosby recall, Cochise County, Arizona

See also: Tom Crosby recall, Cochise County, Arizona (2023)

Supervisor Tom Crosby

An attempt to recall Cochise County District 1 Supervisor Tom Crosby in Arizona began in January 2023. Recall supporters needed to collect 4,865 valid signatures of residents in Supervisor District 1 by May 3, 2023, to get the recall on the ballot. The recall effort failed after supporters did not collect the required number of signatures by the deadline. Crosby won an uncontested election to the supervisor position in 2020.

Following the 2022 election, Crosby and District 3 Supervisor Peggy Judd declined to certify the county's election results. After Pima County Superior Court Judge Casey McGinley ordered the county to certify its results, Judd and District 2 Supervisor Ann English voted to do so. Crosby did not participate in the vote.

Supporters of the recall argued that Crosby attempted to obstruct the county's election procedures by refusing to certify thousands of ballots. They also argued that he improperly advocated for the hand count of ballots and wasted government resources. Ballotpedia did not locate a response to the recall effort from Crosby.

See also

• Recall overview
• Political recall efforts
• Political recall efforts, 2022
• Laws governing recall
• Ballotpedia's 2022 Recall Analysis
• Ballotpedia's Mid-Year Recall Report (2022)