Any person holding any elective office of the City, whether by election, succession, or appointment to fill a vacancy, shall be subject to removal from office at a recall election in the manner provided in this chapter.

ANNOTATION

Sources: See Charter of the City of Los Angeles (Annot. Ed., 1948) Section 290.

Purposes: 1. The power is vested in the electorate to recall officials elected by them so that such officials may be directly responsible for their behavior in office to the electorate. The Charter vests responsibilities of great magnitude in the Mayor, the City Controller and Councilmen. The electorate is entitled to expect the proper discharge of those responsibilities and in accordance with promises made when office was sought, barring changes in circumstances which justify other courses of action. The power of the electorate to recall should serve as a spur to elected officials to be faithful to this trust. It is also intended to serve as an expeditious and effective means for removing from office an elected official who has failed to sustain such trust. Cf. the impeachment procedure under the Act of June 25, 1919, P.L. 581, Article IV, Section 9 and the experience thereunder.

2. While no charges are required to be lodged formally against an elected official to subject him to a recall election it is anticipated on the basis of experience in other jurisdictions having the recall, that the electorate will exercise its power to recall wisely, for good reasons and in accordance with the purpose and spirit of the recall.

3. Elected officials subject to recall are the Mayor, the City Controller, the City Treasurer and Councilmen.

4. Officials holding an elective office are subject to recall regardless of the manner in which they were designated to hold office.