Recall campaign against Alaska governor can proceed, state court says
Gov. Michael Dunleavy speaks during an event on the South Lawn of the White House on July 16, 2020. Photo: Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Alaska's Supreme Court ruled Friday that the recall campaign to oust Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy is legal and may proceed, Reuters reports.
The big picture: The governor's political opponents, who are leading what they say is a bipartisan campaign, argue that Dunleavy has abused his power and is unfit for office.
- Recall supporters cite allegations that Dunleavy illegally used his budget veto to punish judges for abortion-rights rulings and violated ethics laws by using state funds for partisan campaign purposes, per Reuters.
- To qualify for a recall election on the Alaska ballot, campaigners must garner petition signatures totaling 10% of votes cast in the previous statewide election and, subsequently, get signatures totaling 25% of the votes cast, per Reuters.
What they're saying: The court said that voters will determine whether Dunleavy is fit for office.
- "The people asked to sign petitions must decide whether the allegations are serious enough to warrant a recall election; each voter in the voting booth must decide whether the allegations are serious enough to warrant removal from office," the opinion said.
The other side: Dunleavy, who has about 17 months left in his term, said in a statement that decision will subject officials to "baseless, expensive, and distracting recall elections by their political opponents," per Reuters.