Posted May 6, 2014, 2:40 pm
A recall effort that targeted two members of the Governing Board of Pima Community College is being abandoned, and organizers will not submit petitions after failing to gather enough signatures. The Southern Arizona Leadership Council said that the "recall committees found identifying valid voters ... and then convincing them to sign the recall petition too difficult to overcome."
A litany of complaints prompted by the college being placed on probation by the Higher Learning Commission led a variety of groups, including the SALC, to seek the recall of two of the five-member board. Recall organizers targeted Scott Stewart and Marty Cortez. A third targeted board member, Brenda Even, is up for election in November.
Recall organizers will not be submitting petitions to the county for certification, a Tuesday email from SALC to members of the business group said. The deadline for turning in petitions is Wednesday.
Instead of seeking to oust members of the board by forcing an election, the backs of the effort will instead recruit new candidates to lead the school, the email said.
Recall backers had 120 days to gather nearly 30,000 valid signatures to force an election in Stewart's District 4 and Cortez's District 5. Governing Board districts parallel districts for the Pima County Board of Supervisors.
Stewart's term ends in 2016; Cortez was elected to a term ending in 2016.
Check back for updates.
2
1 comment on this story
I personally won’t let Brenda Even run unopposed. If no one else steps up, then I will get my name on the ballot as an alternative. What would be the basis of my campaign, you may ask? Well, I worked at PCC for four years. I have witness first-hand what caused many of their problems, and I know what the comm-sense solution is to then. Oh, yeah, and most importantly…I’m not Brenda Even.