Jackson Co. Executive responds to litigation alleging attempt to delay recall election

Yahoo

09-07-2025

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — After Jackson County, Missouri lawmakers , July 7, to hold a special election to decide Jackson County Executive Frank White Jr.'s potential recall, litigation has been filed stating that he and his office cannot delay a special election.
On Wednesday, Executive White said in a news release that the recall efforts are not based on what's best for the county, and that the true root of the efforts for his recall, and litigation alleging his attempt to delay an election, lie in an attempted power grab.
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'Let's be honest: this recall isn't about what's best for Jackson County – it's about politics, personal power grabs, wasted taxpayer dollars, and, most of all, stadium subsidies,' White's statement reads.
Additionally, White's statement responds to a petition filed on Wednesday, July 9, which claims that White's office attempted to delay the vote for his recall.
'The public deserves to know who's behind today's lawsuit. The attorney leading the effort, Phil LeVota, previously asked me to create a new judicial position in the County's municipal court so he could be appointed to it. I declined because expanding government to create a job for a political insider is exactly what I was elected to stop,' White's statement reads.
'Even more concerning, Mr. LeVota has been openly lobbying legislators to name him interim County Executive if a recall succeeds, and at the same time, doing the bidding of the teams in the press.'
The lawsuit says according to the Jackson County Charter, a special election like the recall election would need to be held within 60 days of when petitions were filed. That would mean that the election would need to be held by August 26 or 29, depending on whether the date the petitions were filed is chosen as June 27 or 29.
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Jackson County's Sixth District Legislator, Sean Smith, was one of nine legislators in the county who voted for the special recall election. He released a statement in response to White's reaction to recall efforts as well.
Smith claims that on Monday, the County Administration seemingly intentionally left early for the day in an attempt to delay the August 26 special election. Smith also describes the language used by the County Charter, how attempting to delay the election is illegal and that he expects similar efforts from the County Administration to continue.
'The section of the County Charter that describes the recall process begins with 'The people reserve the power to propose and enact all ordinances independent of the County Legislature'. Indeed, the recall petition contains the statement 'Be it ordained.' Once sufficient signatures were obtained and certified the ordinance requiring the election should've been certified and an election scheduled, without legislative action, within the 60 days required by the Charter,' Smith's release says.
'Further efforts by the administration will no doubt continue. These could include refusing to fund the election which is another legal requirement, challenging the validity of the petitions using County resources, which violates election law or other measures that remain to be seen.'
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The petition states and requests that the Jackson County and Kansas City Election Boards immediately begin planning a special election for Executive White's recall on August 26.
The petition also asks the court to instruct the County Legislature and County Executive that they cannot propose, pass, veto or deal with any ordinance relating to a recall election process of a county official as the election boards have already been served with the signatures which is an election initiative ordinance and that is the notice to the election boards under the Charter.'
This is a developing story; FOX4 will provide updates as they're made available.
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