A recall effort seeking to remove three of the Antelope Valley Union High School District board of trustees’ five members did not go to a vote in 2019. In order for the recall to be included on the ballot, supporters were required to submit petitions with the signatures of 25,000 registered voters from the three trustee areas to the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk by October 1, 2019. In total, 12,000 recall petition signatures were collected across the three trustee areas.

 

The recall effort targeting board President Robert Davis, Vice President Victoria Ruffin, and Clerk Amanda Parrell was initiated in April 2019. The filed notice of intent cited concerns regarding personnel, spending, and relationships with community members. In response to the effort, Davis said he believed the board was on track with its new vision and that change can be hard to accept. Ruffin said that she believed district residents were troubled by the board’s efforts to shed light on issues.

 

The notice of intent to circulate recall petitions was filed with the county on April 15, 2019, and the county approved the petitions for circulation on June 3, 2019. To trigger the recall election, Davis’ petition required 7,964 signatures by registered voters in his trustee area, Parrell’s required 6,833 signatures, and Ruffin’s required 7,388 signatures.

 

Ballotpedia has tracked 17 school board recall efforts targeting 41 board members in 2019. One recall effort against two board members was on the ballot on February 19, 2019. A second recall election against three board members was held on August 27, 2019. A third recall election against one member will be held on November 5, 2019, and a fourth recall election against one member will be held on December 10, 2019.

 

In 2018, Ballotpedia covered a total of 206 recall efforts against 299 elected officials. Of the 123 officials whose recalls made it to the ballot, 77 were recalled for a rate of 62.6 percent. That was higher than the 56.9 percent rate and 56.3 percent rate for 2017 and 2016 recalls, respectively.