Laws governing recall

The information on this page is meant for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Those interested in initiating a recall should consult with their local authoritative bodies.

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Thirty-nine states have provisions allowing for recall of certain elected officials at the local and/or state level.^[1][2]

Background[edit]

Recall is a process by which citizens may remove elected officials from their positions before the end of their term.^[3] It should not be confused with the legislative process of removing officials called impeachment. It should also not be confused with retention elections held in some states for members of the judiciary.

Recall election of state officials[edit]

There are provisions for recalls of state officers in 19 states. The process begins with a petition drive and ends with an election.^[4]

States that allow recall elections of state officials:

Recall trial of state officials[edit]

Virginia has a process of recall by which a trial in the state Circuit Courts is petitioned. Virginia is the only state to use this process. Virginia laws clearly state local officials can be recalled. Whether this would apply to state-level officers is unclear given ambiguous legal language and issues with the jurisdiction of the court. There is no precedent of a Virginia state legislator or governor having faced recall.^[4][5]

State officials that can be recalled[edit]

The following table indicates which elected state officials (in general) can be recalled based on state law.

State	Executive	Legislative	Judicial[6]	Provision
Alaska	a	a	d	"All elected public officials in the State, except judicial officers, are subject to recall..." (AK Con. Art. 11, §8)
Arizona	a	a	a	"Every public officer in the state of Arizona, holding an elective office, either by election or appointment, is subject to recall..." (AZ Con. Art. 8, §1-6)
California	a	a	a	"Recall is the power of the electors to remove an elective officer." (CA Con. Art. 2, §13-19)
Colorado	a	a	a	"Every elective public officer of the state of Colorado may be recalled..." (CO Con. Art. 21)
Georgia	a	a	a	"The General Assembly is hereby authorized to provide by general law for the recall of public officials who hold elective office..." (GA Con. Art. 2, §2.4)
Idaho	a	a	d	"Every public officer in the state of Idaho, excepting the judicial officers, is subject to recall..." (ID Con. Art. 6, §6)
Illinois	a (Governor Only)	d	d	"The recall of the Governor may be proposed..." (IL Con. Art. 3, §7)
Kansas	a	a	d	"All elected public officials in the state, except judicial officers, shall be subject to recall by voters..." (Article 4, §3)
Louisiana	a	a	d	"The legislature shall provide by general law for the recall by election of any state, district, parochial, ward, or municipal official except judges of the courts of record..." (LA Con. Art. 10, §26)
Michigan	a	a	d	"Laws shall be enacted to provide for the recall of all elective officers except judges of courts of record..." (MI Con. Art. 2, §8)
Minnesota	a	a	a	"A member of the senate or the house of representatives, an executive officer of the state identified in section 1 of article V of the constitution, or a judge of the supreme court, the court of appeals, or a district court is subject to recall from office by the voters..." (MN Con. Art. 8, §6)
Montana	a	a	a	"Any person holding a public office of the state or any of its political subdivisions, either by election or appointment, is subject to recall from office..." (MT Ann. Code 2-16-6)
Nevada	a	a	a[7]	"Every public officer in the State of Nevada is subject, as herein provided, to recall from office..." (NV Con. Art. 2, §9)
New Jersey	a	a	d	"The people reserve unto themselves the power to recall, after at least one year of service, any elected official in this State or representing this State in the United States Congress..." (NJ Con. Art. 1, §2(b))
North Dakota	a	a	a	"Any elected official of the state, of any county or of any legislative or county commissioner district shall be subject to recall..." (ND Con. Art. 3, §10)
Oregon	a	a	a	"Every public officer in Oregon is subject, as herein provided, to recall by the electors of the state or of the electoral district from which the public officer is elected..." (OR Con. Art. 2, §18)
Rhode Island	a	d	d	"The governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, attorney-general, general treasurer shall be ... subject to recall..." (RI Con. Art. 4, §1)
Virginia	tc [8]	tc [8]	d	"Upon petition, a circuit court may remove from office any elected officer or officer who has been appointed to fill an elective office, residing within the jurisdiction of the court..." (VA Code 24.2-233)
Washington	a	a	d	"Every elective public officer of the state of Washington expect [except] judges of courts of record is subject to recall..." (WA Con. Art. 1, Sec. 33-34)
Wisconsin	a	a	a	"The qualified electors of the state, of any congressional, judicial or legislative district or of any county may petition for the recall of any incumbent elective officer..." (WI Con. Art. 13, §12)

Specific provisions for state officer recalls[edit]

The following table indicates some basic information regarding laws governing recall laws on state officers.^[4]

Choosing a successor[edit]

There are four general methods used to choose a successor for a position as a result of a recall election.^{[4][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17]}

Simultaneous Election — The (potential) successor is chosen on the same ballot. This is used in:

Separate Special Election — The successor is chosen in a special election following the recall election. This is used in:

Appointment — The successor is appointed. This is used in:

Automatic replacement — The successor is determined by the legal line of succession. This is used in:

Recall of local officials[edit]

There are 39 states that allow for recall of local elected officials. This may only apply in limited situations in some states, which is generally listed below. Other states not listed may also have limited local recall due to home rule provisions. In those cases, the states allow cities and counties to adopt their own charters, which could then provide for local recall, even if no other city or county in the state allows it.^[1][2]

States with provisions for recall of local officials:

Recall of federal officials[edit]

The United States Constitution does not provide for recall of any elected federal official. The option was considered during the drafting of the document in 1787, but was not included in the final version. Some state constitutions have stated the right of citizens to recall their members of the United States Congress, but whether it is constitutionally legal at the federal level has not been yet been ruled upon by the United States Supreme Court. One of the closest noted legal precedent is U.S. Term Limits, Inc. v. Thornton, in which the Supreme Court decided that states did not have the right to impose new terms, qualifications, or conditions of service on federal officials.^[20]

Some states have released opinions and rulings on recall of members of the U.S. Congress. Attorneys general in Arkansas (2010), Louisiana (2009), Kansas (1994), Nevada (1978), and Oregon (1935) all issued opinions against the recall of federal officials. Conversely, the Attorney General of Wisconsin in 1979 gave an opinion that state administration could not reject a petition for recall of a member of the U.S. Congress. In 2010, the Supreme Court of New Jersey ruled against federal recall and the Supreme Court of North Dakota also upheld an opinion by the state's attorney general against federal recall. Michigan courts stopped a recall petition against a member of Congress in 2007. A federal court in 1967 dismissed a case from Idaho where petitioners hoped to require the state to accept petitions seeking recall of a U.S. Senator.^[20]

States with no recall provisions[edit]

States with no known recall provisions are as follows:

Whether grounds are required[edit]

See also: States that require grounds for recalls

In some states that allow recall, a recall can only occur under certain circumstances. An example of this is Georgia, where an elected official may only be recalled under the circumstances of "an act of malfeasance or misconduct while in office, violation of the oath of office, failure to perform duties prescribed by law, or willfully misusing, converting, or misappropriating, without authority, public property or public funds entrusted to or associated with the elective office to which the official has been elected or appointed."

In other states, recalls may proceed without having to fit within a prescribed set of grounds.

Grounds required[edit]

States that allow recall elections only if they fit within certain prescribed grounds include:

See also[edit]

• Upcoming recall elections
• List of political recalls
• States that have pre-petition signature requirements for recalls
• States that require grounds for recalls
• Ballotpedia's Recall Report

External links[edit]

All:

• The Recall Elections Blog

State:

• Recall of State Officials (National Conference of State Legislatures)
• "State Recall Provisions" (The Book of the States 2013)

Local:

• Recall provisions governing local officials (National Conference of State Legislatures)

Federal:

• Recall of Legislators and the Removal of Members of Congress from Office (Congressional Research Service)

Footnotes[edit]