When Have Recalls Succeeded in California?
In the 100 years since the recall was reintroduced to American politics, there have been thousands of recalls directed against local officials, ranging from mayors of Los Angeles to local school board members. In that time, there has been only a handful directed at state officials, nearly all against state legislators. Different reasons have been suggested for this discrepancy. One California commission cited the fact that local officials are more likely to have an immediate effect on people’s lives. Others cited partisanship: votes against local officials are less likely to have a partisan bent. Many local elections are nonpartisan and voters frequently subscribe to the words of Fiorello LaGuardia: “there is no Democrat or Republican way to pick up garbage.” State officials, operating in the “laboratory of democracy,” are more likely to have to vote on controversial policy and, not coincidentally, voters elect them along partisan lines. One political scientist said: “Signing a petitio
