Are California Recall Elections Anti-Democratic?
by Laura Dolson 9/12/03 Goodness knows that by now quite a lot has been written about recall elections in California. Some say that they are the very pinnacle of democracy, and others retort that they are exactly the opposite. I have had my opinions from the beginning of the gubernatorial recall effort, but the current move to recall 80% of our school board has given even more impetus to my thinking on this issue. We now have before us two recall attempts – one that may radically change the governing of one of the world’s largest economies, and one which may have an impact on our relatively small educational community. It’s interesting to use them as a jumping-off point to look at the whole California recall system. (Read more California recalls) To begin with, obviously, free elections are at the very foundation of democracy. A lot of people held their breaths in 1797 when John Adams was about to be inaugurated as president. Would there truly be a peaceful transfer of power from one m
