Recall...and Then What?

A successful recall creates a vacancy (or vacancies) on the Assembly and then we are back to square one: appointment.

Charter and Code both indicate a bias for appointment. The Charter says that the Assembly "...shall attempt to appoint a qualified person within 30 days" (Article II, Section 2.04) and the Code says that the Assembly "...shall, within 30 days, appoint a qualified person..."(2.10.250(A)).

I do not like the idea of 4 or 5 people appointing a person or persons to serve as representative of the community at large. For me, that puts too big a gap between representative and represented, elected and electors. I believe that borough wide elections are the best method for establishing a representative government. If elected Mayor of an Assembly faced with vacancies, I will urge the Assembly to appoint a qualified candidate who garnered at least 40% of the vote in the October 4 election. Unlike the previous appointment debacle, we will remain in session until an appointment is achieved. If necessary, and appropriate, I will use the mayor's right to veto.

However, that being said, I will also work with the Assembly to introduce changes to the Code and if necessary to the Charter, that will give the Haines Borough Assembly the option of calling for a special election to fill a vacancy. I think it is especially appropriate to call for a special election when a seat will be vacated for more than 6 months prior to a regularly scheduled election. On the other hand, when a seat is vacated for 3 months or less, it makes good sense to go with an appointment. The Assembly should have the option. When a vacancy occurs, I believe that the first order of business should be able to be a debatable motion indicating whether the vacancy is to be filled by appointment or by election. Code and perhaps Charter changes are needed to provide that option.