Jackson County likely won't vote on Frank White recall next month. Here's why

Yahoo

12-07-2025

Jackson County voters are unlikely to cast ballots next month on whether to oust Frank White Jr. from office as their county executive, the chair of the county legislature says.
The recall election will likely be moved back. Assuming that White fails to get a court order blocking it, count on an election in September or November, legislator DaRon McGee told an online audience of about 80 people Friday during a special meeting of the Urban Summit, which is led by local civil rights leaders.
Citing what he called 'a host of obstacles,' McGee said there is not enough time for the city and county election boards to perform all the work and meet all the statutory deadlines for the vote to occur on Aug. 26 as the county legislature directed in an ordinance that passed unanimously on Monday.
For the election to be held then, election boards would need to be mailing out ballots right now to civilian voters who live out of the United States or military personnel and their families stationed at foreign military bases.
And local absentee voting would need to start next week.
But no ballots have been printed yet, McGee said. The election boards won't act on the ordinance setting the Aug. 26 election date until it becomes final. And that likely won't happen until next Friday, July 18.
The legislature has scheduled a meeting that morning to override White's expected veto of the ordinance. County executives have 10 days from the time an ordinance is approved to either sign it, veto it or let it become law by taking no action.
McGee said he assumed White will take all the time he is allotted and that he feels certain an override vote would be successful.
'I think there is universal support to put this on the ballot and let the election happen as quickly as possible, without delay,' McGee said.
One of White's biggest critics, legislator Manny Abarca mistakenly reported on X Friday that White had already vetoed the recall ordinance by mistaking that veto with the county executive's announcement that he had struck down an entirely unrelated ordinance.
A local TV station went with that based on Abarca's tweet, then later altered its headline.
County legislators said Monday that it would be improper for White to veto an ordinance that affects his future in office. But Counselor Bryan Covinsky, the chief lawyer for county government, said nothing in the charter precludes White from vetoing it.
Complicating matters, at least two election-related lawsuits were filed this week. The one filed on Wednesday by four county residents asks a judge to order that the election go forward on Aug. 26 to comply with the county charter requirement that a vote be held 60 days after the election boards have received enough valid signatures from voters requesting a recall vote.
The election boards issued a report on June 30 stating the petitioners had reached that threshold.
The other lawsuit was filed Thursday by the Kansas City and Jackson County election boards. They argue that the charter's 60-day time limit conflicts with state and federal election laws and cannot supercede them.
For the election to be held on Aug. 26 the county legislature needed to have passed its ordinance setting election back on June 17, the election boards' lawsuit said. Under federal law, overseas ballots would need to be available to those voters by this Saturday, July 12.
Missouri law sets the deadline a day earlier, the lawsuit said.
'Plaintiffs seek a court order declaring that the recall election cannot lawfully be held on August 26, 2025, and requiring that it instead be scheduled for Tuesday, November 4, 2025, the next available general election date in accordance with Missouri Revised Statutes, Chapter 115,' the lawsuit says.
McGee said a court could disagree with the election boards' request for permission to hold the election in November and allow the legislature to schedule a special election in September.
One possibility that didn't come up at the meeting: White could file a lawsuit questioning the validity of the signatures on the recall petitions. He's been building the foundation for a legal challenge since the petition drive began two years ago.
Legislators recently criticized him for spending tax dollars to obtain copies of the petition signature pages and other documents to prepare for that court fight.
'There are serious legal concerns about whether these petitions comply with Missouri law—including the lack of a required cause and the use of out-of-state signature gatherers,' White said in a text message in response to The Star's request for comment.
'On top of that, the public has been misled—recall organizers have distorted the law, concealed their involvement, and are backed by a dark money group that refuses to disclose its donors.
As County Executive, I have a duty to uphold the law and protect taxpayers from funding an unbudgeted election triggered by what may be an unlawful, highly politicized effort. I will use every tool at my disposal to ensure taxpayer dollars aren't wasted on a process that fails both legal and ethical standards.'
The former star second baseman for the Kansas City Royals was appointed to fill the unexpired term Mike Sanders in early 2016 and has been elected to the job three times. His current term runs through the end of 2026.
He has faced criticism in recent years for his handling of the biennial reassessment process, which led to steep increases in property taxes for many residents and business owners. He has also been at odds with a majority of legislators over budget issues.
The Star's Ilana Arougheti contributed reporting.