Politics & Government
Effort to Recall Troy Mayor Moves Forward; Group Plans to Start Collecting Signatures
The Oakland County Election Commission unanimously approves the language in one of two recall petitions Thursday afternoon, allowing the effort to recall the controversial mayor to proceed.
, a political action committee comprised of "concerned citizens" leading the effort to recall Troy Mayor Janice Daniels, will soon begin collecting signatures after one of its petitions was approved Thursday afternoon.
Daniels first came under fire in December for her and has remained the center of controversy after (a was later approved), telling the Gay-Straight Alliance and writing a lengthy position paper .
The Oakland County Election Commission – Oakland County Clerk Bill Bullard, Oakland Probate Judge Linda Hallmark and Oakland County Treasurer Andy Meisner – voted unanimously to approve the language of the group's first petition during a in Pontiac.
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In the approved petition, the group lists "voting to reject a $8,485,212 Federal investment grant to the City of Troy on December 19, 2011" as the sole reason for recalling the mayor.
During Thursday's meeting, Daniels spoke publicly against the language of the first petition and argued that it does not accurately reflect .
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"The resolution that’s cited didn’t address the … grant, it addressed the architectural contract," she said.
Daniels also replied to the recall effort in a written statement, which reads in part:
"The majority of these accusations are refutable conclusions drawn by the complainant. They are not facts. ... If this honorable board would watch the Troy City Council meetings I believe that they would agree that as a newly elected government official I am making a valiant effort to Chair these meetings with dignity and respect to all persons who come before the board, with an honest effort to follow protocol and with an expressed love for our City and our citizens."
Troy resident and petition sponsor Matt Binkowski said he is glad one of the resolutions was approved and plans to continue the recall effort.
"We're pleased we can move forward," he said. "We have plans to begin collecting signatures mid-month."
Binkowski said Recall Janice Daniels has a core group of "about a dozen" individuals, though "hundreds" have written or called to voice their support and volunteer to collect signatures, of which 7,985 valid signatures are required to put the issue to voters.
"We do have a plan in place" for collecting signatures, Binkowski said. "It's going to be a lot of leg work."
A second petition, which cited four reasons for recalling Daniels, including the mayor's , was rejected by Bullard and Hallmark.
"I have concerns about … whether the oath of office was prior to the time that the mayor was actually sworn in for her office," Hallmark said during the hearing, which drew a crowd of more than 30 people to the Pontiac courtroom. According to state law, each reason for the recall must be based upon the mayor’s conduct during her current term in office.
Binkowski said he submitted two petitions in case one was denied. If both petitions had been approved, only the first recall petition to be submitted with the required number of signatures would have been accepted.
Daniels now has 10 days to appeal the committee's decision.
Complete coverage
For comprehensive coverage of the recall effort, visit our special Troy Mayor Janice Daniels topic page.
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