This story was reported for the San Diego News Network on May 27, 2010.
The recall of former California Gov. Gray Davis in 2003 tanked his political career. In stark contrast, though, the attempted recall of now-Sen. Dianne Feinstein in 1984, when she was mayor of San Francisco, boosted her civic profile.
Despite the latter example of political perseverance, locals say the recall attempt against Poway Councilmember Betty Rexford will crush any future desires she may have in elected office, whether the effort is successful or not.
“She has so many issues surrounding her and the recall has brought it to the forefront,” said San Diego State University political science professor Brian Adams. “It’s a gamble, but chances are this will damage her career even if she stayed in office.”
Rexford is fighting a recall effort that Poway citizens will vote on in the June 8 primary. Should she be removed from City Council, she would be replaced with one of eight candidates vying for a seat.
The councilmember was pressured to resign and has faced criticism since residents claim she used her role as an elected official to interfere with building plans in her neighborhood last year. The claim led to a lawsuit, which forced the city to spend about $500,000 in legal fees.
Though it’s unclear what the outcome of the litigation will be, locals say Rexford’s career in the political arena is over.
Recalls that San Diegans have voted on have been rare. Since the gubernatorial recall in 2003, there have been only four other recalls in the county, according to the Registrar of Voters: the 2005 recall of a Rainbow Municipal Water District director; the 2007 recall of the Potrero Community Planning Area members; the 2009 recall of a Rainbow Municipal Water District ordinance; and the 2009 recall of an Oceanside councilmember.
Adams — who noted how rare recalls are, not just in the region, but throughout the Golden State — said the consequences of a recall vary, despite the apparent outcome of an elected official losing his or her seat. With a small city like Poway, whose population is about 48,044 according to the 2000 U.S. Census, the result could be damaging to Rexford’s career, given the fact that thousands of signatures have been collected to support the recall, said Adams.
“There’s an interesting dynamic in the city of Poway,” he said. “Turnout is generally fairly low in the primary, but the recall support seems great. At this point, the recall has already been successful enough to hurt her future chances of office.”
Gary Jacobson, political science professor at UC San Diego, shared Adams’ thoughts.
“If she survives the recall, it’s unlikely she’ll go on to greater things,” Jacobson said.
Steve Vaus, a candidate for Rexford’s seat who is leading the recall effort, said he feels “quite confident” the recall will succeed. Vaus added that Rexford “violated the trust of the people.”
Janette Littler, a San Diego-based GOP consultant, agreed that the recall would be successful.
“Recalls are very hard to accomplish, but I suspect that Betty Rexford will never again be an elected official,” she said. “The only question we should ask is, ‘Who will be fulfilling her seat next?’”
Betty Rexford declined an interview request. Hoa Quach is the political editor for the San Diego News Network.