Awaiting the Recall Results…
Update: We have just found out that there are 1140 additional ballots to be counted. While Provisional ballots are counted later I am surprised that they did not mention the 864 turned in at the polls that were not included in the unofficial final count. Therefore, to survive the recall Lance must get over 55 percent of the remaining ballots. We are to have that data by 5 p.m.
Around 25 local citizens who worked to remove a sitting mayor felt as if we were on a roller coaster tonight. Register reporter Erika Ritchie and a photographer arrived at the election night party held at the home of Joe Zambito around 8 p.m. As we impatiently awaited the ROV results Erika interviewed several of the volunteers as we sat glued to two desktop computers awaited the results from the ROV.
The first cycle consisted of the 10,316 absentee/Vote by Mail ballots where the YES on recall had 53.1% or 5,398 votes and the NO vote was 46.9% of 4,738.
As to the second question candidate Dave Leckness led candidate Dale Tyler by 272 in that first cycle and pulled further away as the night progressed.
The defeat of a sitting mayor was a major blow for Wayne Quint, president, Association of Orange County Deputy Sheriffs who poured around $100,000 in the campaign to save Lance’s job. Analyzing how a group of diverse individuals were able to defeat this powerful union and a sitting mayor will be discussed for years to come.
For example we only need to look at the city of Oceanside where in December a government employee union spent $200,000 to remove a city councilman yet lost with 63% voting against the recall. Source: http://www.kpbs.org/news/2009/dec/22/are-recall-elections-worth-expense/
After the final results were reported Council member Cathy Schlicht, who attended the victory party, said “It was amazing that a group of grass rooters came together to defeat a well funded special interests tonight.” She went on to say
hat “hopefully the atmosphere in city hall will be more civil and less condescending.”
Later in the evening, as we realized what had just happened, Cathy said “this is a moral victory.”
In my telephone call with councilman John Paul Ledesma, immediately after the final numbers were posted, he questioned the union involvement stating “what’s Wayne Quint’s payoff in all this? It doesn’t make any sense.”As today’s voting began to be posted, beginning with the first 12 of 38 precincts, the NO on recall count was cutting into the huge lead from the absentees and had dropped to negative 413. The next cycle included 25 of 38 precincts with the YES lead dropping to 320 votes. As small groups gathered around the house to project the final results we were all over the map in guessing the final outcome.
Dale Tyler who was among those in attendance said this was “a 75% victory for the citizens” of Mission Viejo.
Somewhere around 10:30 the ROV reported a total of 13,662 votes being cast with Lance being defeated by 118 votes. The final score, for those who follow these details, was 6,858 voting YES and 6,740 voting NO on the question should he be recalled.
Although it is not easy to accomplish, if David can defeat Goliath in Mission Viejo, it can happen in any city.
So, if Leckness is going to continue MacLean’s policies, I guess this makes the recall a bigger waste of money than the Rose Parade float. When is the next recall going to be for the people who just wasted 270k?
Well done!
#1,
If Leckness pulls a MacLean he will be tossed out in November.
Was all this worth it? You bet. MacLean’s ouster will send a chill up the spine of every single tax and spend RINO in Orange County.
Good morning Larry
I congratulate you and your minions on your hollow victory. Sure you were able to succeed with Lance but the real battle as we all know was for your control over the Council and ultimately gaining the City Managers job. Don’t think that’s going to happen. Regarding grass roots…..that is what happened when the citizens recognized Tyler for the type of law breaking tax evador that he is. I wonder how he will feel in the upcoming months following the DA’s, DMV and the CHP investigations. Actually I don’t think he has the brain power to feel much of anything. He will likely never realize that he was used by you as cannon fodder in yet another of your quests for political power. I almost feel sorry for him, that is until I reflect on his lack of fundamental character…snakes lie with snakes. Speaking iof which please remind Francis to take his meds….3 times a day. Who’d of thunk it….way to go “DAVE”
voters exercising their rights is never a waste of money
Cook. Thank you for that comment. Those of us who worked around the clock to remove our mayor did so without a dime of “special interest” money.
Things will be different at future city council meetings and I say that in a positive tone.
Anyone wishing to see a council person get beat up while the recalled mayor let it occur simply needs to watch the video of Monday’s meeting on our city’s web site.
John Holmes.
Regardless of your opinion this recall was not about me.
Please conduct some research and let us all know the last time a city of 75,000 to 100,000
removed not one but two sitting mayors within eight years.
See how many recall elecitons prevail.
In Mission Viejo’s 2002 election we trounced mayor Withrow and vice Mayor Butterfield with strong financial support.
That was not the case yesterday where the unions poured tons of money with massive TV spot ads and other forms of communication against this rag tag group of concerned residents who did not have a large bankroll to compete.
Yet the outcome was the same. Do some additional homework and you will quuickly discover that over 90% of incumbents prevail in elections.
So the 2002 Revolution in Mission Viejo had the same outcome. Mayors MacLean and Withrow booted out of office
Feedback from a former city commissioner and party attendee to think about:
Larry
“I find it interesting that 13,662 citizens voted for the recall.
Yet only 10,755 bothered to vote for either of the replacement candidates.
So my observation is that there were 2,907 voters that wanted Lance either in or out but expressed no opinion as to a replacement.
Perhaps these 2,907 voters were:
1.Making a hidden message that there is a community want for fresh faces without political baggage.
2.Convinced that Lance would not be recalled so there was no need to vote for a replacement.
3.Wanting another non candidate so wrote in a citizens name.
Would appreciate hearing your opinion on this.”
Congratulations to the people of Mission Viejo! (Shouldn’t it really be Mission Vieja Gustavo?)
Art P.: I’ve heard you and Mr. Mills write for years about how terrible your City Council is in Santa Ana. Why no recall if you feel so strongly?
This just in there are 1100 more ballots that need to be counted
MV has been a joke around the county for quite some time. Hopefully this will shake the others up and they won’t continue to feed themselves benne’s at the public trough!
Congratulations to the volunteers who worked so hard on this effort.
Finally, with a 1% difference in the tally, does this force an automatic recount at City expense as a county managed election would? …just asking?
Larry,
Keep your underpants dry. There are still 1,140 ballots left to count, and Lance is only down by 118 votes.
John Holmes—AKA Kenneth.
Fallon off your scooter lately??? Hope you recovered from that head injury of yours.
Paul.
I just updated the post to reflect the 1140 ballots yet to be counted.
We can all do the math. Lance will need to capture over 55% of that total to survive the recall.
Quoting …”“It was amazing that a group of grass rooters came together to defeat a well funded special interests tonight.”
I absolutely LOVE this quote.
It RINGS of the day when the Voters …. most of whom are NOT Civil Servants yet are forced to pay for most of the Civil Servants’ grossly excessive pensions & benefits … can band together and reduce the pension formula for FUTURE years of service for CURRENT employees.
This reduction is an absolute MUST or we are financially doomed !
Touch love.
Have you heard the expression “collective bargaining?”
How about my next headline, should the recall fail in the next 75 minutes, which might read: “OCSD union buys local election”
The pro recall crowd seems a little down they did not get their boy Tyler the tax cheat on the city council. By overwhelming numbers Dave Leckness was preferred by voters over Tyler. In spite of some insulting comments about Dave on this blog by the Larry Gilbert voters recognized Tyler for what he is and chose Dave. It reflects badly on the pro recall crowd for putting up such a disreputable candidate as Tyler. Larry, instead of continuing to put your puppets up for election why not just man up and run yourself (AGAIN).
Norm, whomever you are. Let me clarify this nonsense “spin” on the background of the Mission Viejo recall.
In spite of garbage by uninformed opponents the residents who began the recall effort did so without ANY candidate in mind. I know because several of us were asked if we would consider running if the recall petitions qualified. Once that happened only four voters expressed any interest in being added realizing that there was no guarantee of winning while spending x bucks to complete Lance’s remaining term. The process commenced weeks or even months before I was even involved.
Therefore the rumors that Dale Tyler was”our candidiate” whatever that’s worth is bogus. Like Dave Leckness, Dale offered to enter the ring as removing a councilman requires finding a replacement. It’s that simple.
Art
Your comments about RINO’s and other Republicans who you think are not “pure” enough sounds a little like the Taliban approach to me. Who appointed you judge and jury? If only everybody thought exactly the same way as you life would be perfect, eh? I could train a parrot to say “never spend a dime” but it would still have a birds brain.
Holy cow. 19 votes.
HEEEEE’S BAAACCCK.
As you read MacLean’s ballot statement, you can see a very angry disenfranchised ex mayor. He is only running for one reason, he wants vindication. I truly hope that the thousands of voters who signed his recall papers remember and will not vote for him.
In the end, it may have been 19 votes, but that was after the deputies union spent well over $100,000 to promote a man that has a clear record of anger management issues.
The fact that he yelled and swore at me in closed session as evidenced by the tapes he demanded be released, I was disappointed in persons supporting him who called themselves my friend. Now that I am back to carrying pepper spray, a camera and a recorder to protect myself from him, I can only hope that the residents of Mission Viejo are smarter than to re-elect him.
I have been wondering if Trish and Dave will run as a slate with him. If they do, they are as good as out, and if they don’t, it tells you that they want to disassociate themselves from him as well.