Laws governing recall in Arkansas

Recall elections

Laws governing recall
Recall efforts by state
Recall efforts by year
Recall efforts by type

Select a state from the menu below to learn more about its laws governing recall elections.

A recall election is the process by which citizens may remove elected officials from office before the expiration of their terms. This article summarizes the laws governing recall elections in Arkansas. Arkansas allows for the recall of some local officials but does not allow for the recall of state officials.

In 39 states, local officials can be subject to recall elections. Of those, 19 also permit recalls of state-level officials. Eleven states do not permit recalls of elected officials at any level. Click here for more information.

Offices subject to recall[edit]

Federal officials[edit]

The U.S. Constitution does not provide for the recall of elected federal officials. While some state constitutions have stated that their citizens have the right to recall members of Congress, the Supreme Court has never ruled on whether such recalls are constitutional.^[1] Ballotpedia does not provide coverage of federal recalls. Click here for more information.

State officials[edit]

Arkansas law does not provide for the recall of state officials.^[2]

Local officials[edit]

The laws that govern the conduct of political recalls in Arkansas are Ark. Code §14-47-112, 14-48-114, 14-61-119, 14-92-209, and 6-13-6. Under these statutes, the following local elected officials are subject to recall:

Mayors
Members of board of directors
Commissioners of suburban improvement districts
School board members

Process[edit]

Features of the recall statutes in Arkansas are:

The officeholder must have been in office at least six months before a recall can be started
The signature requirement for mayors and directors is 35% of ballots cast for all candidates for the office at the preceding primary at which the officials were nominated or elected. For commissioners of suburban improvement districts, the requirement is 25% of the owners of real estate in the district. For school board members, the requirement is "at least thirty-five percent (35%) of the electors who are eligible to vote for the office."^[3]
Organizers of a recall for a mayor or city director must file a petition with the relevant city clerk within 90 days of starting to collect signatures.^[4]
If a recall election is held and the majority of the votes cast are in favor of the recall, the official facing recall is removed from office.^[5]

Legislation involving recall elections[edit]

The table below lists bills related to recall elections in Arkansas. The following information is included for each bill:

State
Bill number
Official bill name or caption
Most recent action date
Legislative status
Sponsor party
Topics dealt with by the bill

Bills are organized by most recent action. The table displays up to 100 results. To view more bills, use the arrows in the upper-right corner. Clicking on a bill will open its page on Ballotpedia's Election Administration Legislation Tracker, which includes bill details and a summary.