The following extract from the constitution of Arizona illustrates the way in which a state may provide a constitutional basis for this form of popular control: tive officer in Arizona Nature of ARTICLE VIII, Section 1. Every public officer in the state of Every elecArizona, holding an elective office, either by election or appointment, is subject to recall from such office by the qualified electors subject to the Recall. of the electoral district from which candidates are elected to such office. Such electoral district may include the whole state. Such number of said electors as shall equal twenty-five per centum of the number of votes cast at the last preceding general election for all of the candidates for the office held by such officer, may by petition, which shall be known as a Recall Petition, demand his recall. Section 2. Every Recall Petition must contain a general statement, in not more than two hundred words, of the grounds of such demand, and must be filed in the office in which petitions for nominations to the office held by the incumbent are required to be filed. The signatures to such Recall Petition need not all be on one sheet of paper, but each signer must add to his signature the date of his signing said petition, and his place of residence, giving his street and number, if any, should he reside in a town or city. One of the signers of each sheet of such petition, or the person circulating such sheet, must make and subscribe an oath on said sheet, that the signatures thereon are genuine. the Recall Petition. Election. Section 3. If said officer shall offer his resignation it shall be ac- The Recall cepted, and the vacancy shall be filled as may be provided by law. If he shall not resign within five days after a Recall Petition is filed, a special election shall be ordered to be held, not less than twenty, nor more than thirty days after such order, to determine whether such officer shall be recalled. On the ballots at said election shall be printed the reasons as set forth in the petition for demanding his recall, and, in not more than two hundred words, the officer's justification of his course in office. He shall continue to perform the duties of his office until the result of said election shall have been officially declared. Section 4. Unless he otherwise request, in writing, his name shall The result be placed as a candidate on the official ballot without nomination. Other candidates for the office may be nominated to be voted for of the election. Limitations upon the power to recall. Application election laws. The Recall in practice. Industrial disorder sets a Recall Petition in motion. cessor. at said election. The candidate who shall receive the highest number of votes, shall be declared elected for the remainder of the term. Unless the incumbent receive the highest number of votes, he shall be deemed to be removed from office, upon qualification of his sucIn the event that his successor shall not qualify within five days after the result of said election shall have been declared, the said office shall be vacant, and may be filled as provided by law. Section 5. No Recall Petition shall be circulated against any officer until he shall have held his office for a period of six months, except that it may be filed against a member of the Legislature at any time after five days from the beginning of the first session after his election. After one Recall Petition and election, no further Recall Petition shall be filed against the same officer during the term for which he was elected, unless petitioners signing such petition shall first pay into the public treasury which has paid such election expenses, all expenses of the preceding election. Section 6. The general election laws shall apply to recall elec tions in so far as applicable. Laws necessary to facilitate the operation of the provisions of this article shall be enacted. . . . 223. An example of how the Recall is used 1 A satisfactory decision upon the merits of the Recall is difficult because it is so recent a development, and still so little used, that few data are available. The state-wide Recall has been in existence for more than a decade, yet few state officials have been removed by it. There are more cases in which the Recall has been used against municipal officials, though not always wisely and not always with success. In the following selection, Mr. F. M. Shannonhouse describes the use of the Recall in Charlotte, North Carolina, in 1919: [In the summer of 1919 a street car strike developed in Charlotte. On one occasion] mobs all over the city, composed of delegations from the various cotton mills, stoned the cars and engaged in other lawlessness. The police force remained practically inactive. The day the cars stopped, and the disorders above mentioned occurred, Mon 1 From the National Municipal Review, Vol. IX, No. 1, January, 1920. F. M. Shannonhouse, "How the Recall Worked in Charlotte"; pp. 4-5. day, August 25, numbers of reputable citizens signed the petition for a Recall [against the mayor] and others threatened to sign unless order was maintained. [That night a mob gathered in front of the car barns, held a conference], and voted to enter the car barn and "get" the strike breakers. Upon approaching the barn a shot was fired the mob claims by chief of police, the policemen claim by a member of the mob - immediately followed by promiscuous shooting, resulting in five of the mob being killed and twenty or thirty others being wounded. Peace, long delayed, reigned. Immediately the demand for the Recall was taken by the mob, and a large portion of union labor.. A committee nominated officers to run on the Recall Petition. The recall candidate for mayor made the issue the unlawful shoot- The result. ing at the car barn.. The attitude of a large number who had originally signed the recall petition suddenly reversed. Our newspapers and citizens, neutral so far as unionism was concerned, accepted the issue, waged a fight and defeated the Recall Petition by a vote of 3,300 to 1,900, the biggest election ever held in the city. It was not a question of candidates. It was simply a question of Significance enforcement of the law for the present and the future. The city commissioners, unionists and all others have learned where this community stands on that issue. While the Recall is condemned by a great many, it is the opinion of the Recall Election. of many familiar with the apathy and indifference on the part of a majority of the citizens that the Recall Election led to a campaign of education and action absolutely necessary and essential to head off a rapidly growing spirit of bolshevism, class autocracy and political chaos such as would have led to results unknown. . . ... The Recall rendered an invaluable service under our most trying conditions, and amply justified its inclusion in our charter. Present and new conditions make necessary some proper agency for the majority to ascertain immediately where they stand, and whether or not the majority shall rule, and particularly so when the city government is committed to the hands of three or a few men with full legislative and executive authority. The Recall Election brought out one thousand to fifteen hun- Conclusion. dred more voters than ever voted before in a city election, because Limitations upon the power to recall. Application of the general election laws. The Recall in practice. Industrial sets a Recall at said election. The candidate who shall receive the highest number of votes, shall be declared elected for the remainder of the term. Unless the incumbent receive the highest number of votes, he shall be deemed to be removed from office, upon qualification of his successor. In the event that his successor shall not qualify within five days after the result of said election shall have been declared, the said office shall be vacant, and may be filled as provided by law. Section 5. No Recall Petition shall be circulated against any officer until he shall have held his office for a period of six months, except that it may be filed against a member of the Legislature at any time after five days from the beginning of the first session after his election. After one Recall Petition and election, no further Recall Petition shall be filed against the same officer during the term for which he was elected, unless petitioners signing such petition shall first pay into the public treasury which has paid such election expenses, all expenses of the preceding election. Section 6. The general election laws shall apply to recall elec tions in so far as applicable. Laws necessary to facilitate the operation of the provisions of this article shall be enacted. . . . 223. An example of how the Recall is used 1 A satisfactory decision upon the merits of the Recall is difficult because it is so recent a development, and still so little used, that few data are available. The state-wide Recall has been in existence for more than a decade, yet few state officials have been removed by it. There are more cases in which the Recall has been used against municipal officials, though not always wisely and not always with success. In the following selection, Mr. F. M. Shannonhouse describes the use of the Recall in Charlotte, North Carolina, in 1919: [In the summer of 1919 a street car strike developed in Charlotte. On one occasion] mobs all over the city, composed of delegations from the various cotton mills, stoned the cars and engaged in other lawlessness. The police force remained practically inactive. The day the cars stopped, and the disorders above mentioned occurred, Mon 1 From the National Municipal Review, Vol. IX, No. 1, January, 1920. F. M. Shannonhouse, "How the Recall Worked in Charlotte"; pp. 4-5. day, August 25. numbers of reputable citizens signed the petition for a Recall [against the mayor] and others threatened to sign unless order was maintained. [That night a mob gathered in front of the car barns, held a conference), and voted to enter the car barn and “get” the strike breakers. Upon approaching the barn a shot was fired — the mob claims by chief of police, the policemen claim by a member of the mob-immediately followed by promiscuous shooting. resulting in five of the mob being killed and twenty or thirty others being wounded. Peace, long delayed. reigned. Immediately the demand for the Recall was taken by the mob, and a large portion of union labor. 、、、 A committee nominated officers to run on the Recall Petition. . . . The recall candidate for mayor made the issue the unlawful shoot- The result. ing at the car barn.. The attitude of a large number who had originally signed the recall petition suddenly reversed. Our newspapers and citizens, neutral so far as unionism was concerned, accepted the issue, waged a fight and defeated the Recall Petition by a vote of 3,300 to 1,900, the biggest election ever held in the city. It was not a question of candidates. It was simply a question of Significance enforcement of the law for the present and the future. The city commissioners, unionists and all others have learned where this community stands on that issue. While the Recall is condemned by a great many, it is the opinion of the Recall Election. of many familiar with the apathy and indifference on the part of a majority of the citizens that the Recall Election led to a campaign of education and action absolutely necessary and essential to head off a rapidly growing spirit of bolshevism, class autocracy and political chaos such as would have led to results unknown. . . . The Recall rendered an invaluable service under our most trying conditions, and amply justified its inclusion in our charter. Present and new conditions make necessary some proper agency for the majority to ascertain immediately where they stand, and whether or not the majority shall rule, and particularly so when the city government is committed to the hands of three or a few men with full legislative and executive authority. The Recall Election brought out one thousand to fifteen hun- Conclusion. dred more voters than ever voted before in a city election, because |