A petition seeking to recall Jeanerette Mayor Carol "Bro" Bourgeois Jr. has been filed with the Secretary of State.
Records at the SOS show that the petition, which officials say meets all the requirements of state law to launch a campaign, was received by hand delivery today, July 7. The chair and vice chair of the recall are listed as Holly Royston and Katelyn Trantham, respectively.
Online records indicate Bourgeois is a registered Democrat; they indicate that Royston and Trantham are both registered Republicans.
The organizers are required to state a reason for the recall; the SOS records indicate that "He (the Mayor) is holding hostage budget for salary increases for himself" is the reason given on the paperwork.
We reached out to the mayor for a response; as soon as we receive one we will update this story with it.
In Louisiana, an elected official can be recalled after a group files a petition and follows all the rules to force a recall petition. The group must get a certain percentage of registered voters to sign the petition; the percentage varies by the size of the district in question and is set by state law.
Organizers must file paperwork with the SOS office before they start gathering signatures; once the paperwork is approved as proper form they have a certain period of time to get the signatures.
Records at the Iberia Parish Registrar of Voters show that there are 3,124 eligible voters in Jeanerette. That means the recall campaign must get a third of those people to sign the petition, which would be approximately 1,041 voters. They have 180 days to get those signatures, and then they turn them in to the registrar, who verifies them.
If the required number of verified signatures are obtained, an election is called in which voters will decide if the target of the recall is recalled. If voters say the person must be recalled, then an election is held to fill the now-empty spot. The recalled official cannot run for the office in that election, according to state law. If the voters don't agree to recall the official, he or she just stays in office.
The Secretary of State's website has a lot more detail on the process; if you'd like to read it click here.
