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Barbara Kirkmeyer recall, Weld County Commission, Colorado (2018)
| Weld County Commission recall |
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| Officeholders |
| Recall status |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2018 Recalls in Colorado Colorado recall laws County commission recalls Recall reports |
An effort to recall Barbara Kirkmeyer from her position on the Weld County Commission in Colorado was launched in May 2018. The affidavit for recall was filed by county resident Sara Mondragon on May 28, 2018, who alleged that Kirkmeyer had used her position for personal gain. She also said that Kirkmeyer should have taken action to make a rail crossing safer where two people, including Mondragon's nephew, had died when their vehicles collided with a train. Kirkmeyer said that the recall was based on misinformation.[1] Signatures were not submitted by the deadline, so the recall did not go to a vote.[2]
Recall supporters
The following came from the website of We Care 4 Weld County, the group in favor of recalling Kirkmeyer.
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| —We Care 4 Weld County[4] | ||
Recall opponents
Greeley Tribune
The Greeley Tribune published an editorial on July 7, 2018, against the recall.
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Voters serve as the boss for elected officials. It's the job of the voter ensure politicians faithfully represent the people. And if politicians fail to do that, it's the right of the voter to remove them from office. Still, like any right, it comes with responsibility. The power to remove an elected official from office must be used responsibly, otherwise the entire foundation of our representative republic begins to crumble. The recall effort underway against Weld County Commissioner Barbara Kirkmayer does not strike us as a responsible use of the recall power. To be clear, we're no fawning fans of Kirkmeyer. Frequently on this page we've voiced our disagreement with her positions and occasionally our frustrations with her actions. As an example, we share a complaint with those seeking to recall Kirkmeyer. We don't think she should take mileage reimbursement for the trips she makes to and from the office each day. It's not a good look. Though it's not likely her actions have cost the county as much money as recall proponents claim, we don't think she should do it. Still, in the context of a recall effort, the most telling point is this: Voters in Kirkmeyer's District 3, which includes mostly southern Weld County, returned her to her position with 53 percent of the vote in 2016 after information about her mileage reimbursement already had been made public by a 2014 Tribune story. It's hard to see why voters would choose to recall her over that issue now. Indeed, in the litany of charges leveled against Kirkmeyer by recall proponents, there is no smoking gun. There is no clear abuse of power or criminal activity, which would create the kind of emergency necessary to justify a costly recall. The allegations may contain evidence of some of the kind of questionable decisions that would make excellent fodder for examination in the context of a general election. Though most of the allegations are old, we'll also note there are precious few facts in the allegations leveled against Kirkmeyer. There is plenty of obfuscation and hyperbole. Indeed, this recall effort smacks of petty politics. It speaks volumes that thus far the only monetary support for the recall issue committee comes from a dark money group that won't reveal its donors. Even those who have put their names to the movement seem hesitant to expose their effort to hard questions. Still, recall supporters are gathering signatures. It's the first step of the recall petition. They'll need 5,767 to force the recall onto the ballot, probably this November. We'd hope voters in Kirkmeyer's district will see this recall effort for what it is and quash it before it even gets going. We hope they'll withhold their signatures from the recall petition.[3] |
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| —The Tribune Editorial Board[5] | ||
Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in Colorado
Recall proponents need to collect 5,767 valid signatures—15 percent of the votes cast for the seat in the 2016 election—in order for the recall to be placed on the ballot.[6] The recall affidavit was filed on May 28, 2018, and Kirkmeyer filed her response on June 18, 2018. Recall proponents were able to begin collecting signatures on June 20, 2018. They had 60 days to collect the signatures.[7] Signatures were not submitted by the deadline of 5 p.m. on August 20, 2018.[2]
See also
External links
- Search Google News for this topic
- Weld County Commissioners
- Recall Barbara Kirkmeyer website
- Barbara Kirkmeyer on Facebook
Footnotes
- ↑ The Denver Channel, "Platteville woman seeks to recall Weld County Commissioner Barbara Kirkmeyer," June 6, 2018
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Greeley Tribune, "Group fails to turn in signatures in recall effort against Weld County commissioner," August 20, 2018
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ We Care 4 Weld County, "Home," accessed July 19, 2018
- ↑ Greeley Tribune, "Tribune Opinion: Recall effort against Barbara Kirkmeyer is petty politics," July 7, 2018
- ↑ Greeley Tribune, "Weld County Commissioner Barbara Kirkmeyer faces recall effort," June 4, 2018
- ↑ Greeley Tribune, "Fact-checking 8 recall-related allegations against Barbara Kirkmeyer," July 7, 2018
