Livingston mayor, two City Council members could face recall by voters
An effort is underway to recall three elected Livingston City Council members — including the city’s first-term mayor.
Unlike hired staff, government officials elected by the people cannot simply be fired or removed. Recall gives voters the power to remove an elected official before their official term expires.
The city on May 28 received three notices of intention to circulate recall petitions, Livingston Executive Assistant and Deputy City Clerk Monica Cisneros said in an email to the Sun-Star. The notices are being processed according to state law.
Mayor Juan Aguilar, Mayor Pro-Tem Raul Garcia and Councilmember Gagandeep Kang are cited as the subjects of the early-stage recall process, according to Cisneros.
That excludes just two members of the five-person City Council from a potential future recall election.
Aguilar confirmed to the Sun-Star that he was served over the Memorial Day weekend with a certified letter notifying him of the recall effort.
Aguilar was voted in as the city’s top elected over incumbent Gurpal Samra during the November election. He said he was unsure of the circumstances or grievances that led to a recall being brought forward.
Recent and past turmoil in Livingston
Frustration between some Livingston residents and the City Council became publicly evident in January when a local couple accused Councilmember Kang of misconduct after he allegedly made crude and sexual comments.
Although the council passed a code of conduct for electeds soon after the public accusation, the couple said they were frustrated by a general lack of action taken by the mayor and the rest of City Council to condemn Kang’s alleged behavior.
It is unclear whether this incident is related to the recall.
According to the papers he received, Mario Mendoza was cited as the individual filing the recall notice with the city, Aguilar said.
If the effort underway continues and becomes an actual recall election, it wouldn’t be Livingston’s first.
City residents in 2010 successfully voted to remove former mayor Daniel Varela Sr. and Councilmember Martha Nateras in a landslide election. Turmoil at the time stemmed from a controversial water rate hike that Varela and Nateras supported.
Aguilar said he is hopeful that any complaints against himself and the other two council members will be resolved before the recall process gets to an election, which he said could be costly for the city. The 2010 recall election cost about $54,000.
“I’m hoping to be open for a dialogue and to move forward,” Aguilar said. “I think we can resolve this.”
Aguilar also noted that due to the lengthy recall process and Livingston’s two-year term for mayors, his first term will be coming to its tail end by the time residents cast votes either for or against him anyways.
How the recall process works
A notice of intention to circulate recall petitions is an early stage among many steps required to trigger an official recall election. The three recallees must provide a response to being served the notices within seven days of receiving them. Then, the recall petition can be prepared and circulated for signatures.
Under California law, the number of signatures collected must at least equal a minimum percentage of registered voters. The threshold percentage is determined depending on the number of individuals registered in the given jurisdiction.
Total active registered voters in the City of Livingston currently number 5,905, according to Merced County Registrar of Voters Darlene Ingersoll. Cities like Livingston with between 1,000 to 10,000 residents registered to vote must have 25% of registered residents sign the recall petition.
The petition must collect enough signatures and be submitted within 90 days. The Merced County Registrar of Voters office would become involved starting with the signature verification checking process, Ingersoll said.
If enough signatures are verified by the Registrar, that gives the green light for the recall election to take place within 88 to 125 days. Candidate nomination papers and declaration of candidacy must be filed no fewer than 75 days prior to the election.
This story was originally published June 3, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
