Rossi Wants To Give Voters Opportunity To Recall The Mayor, Adds Warren Kinsella To Team
Posted August 30, 2010 12:43 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Would you like the opportunity to recall the mayor or a city councillor before his or her term expires?
Rocco Rossi floated the idea Monday, announcing a new key component to his campaign platform on the same day it was announced Liberal strategist Warren Kinsella had joined his team.
The mayoral hopeful said if he’s elected on Oct. 25, he’ll send a request to Queen’s Park for voter recall legislation within the first six months of his term.
Similar legislation is in place in more than three dozen jurisdictions the United States and in British Columbia. The law allows voters to hold politicians immediately accountable for their actions, or inaction by giving them the option of removing an elected official from office.
“It’s easier to return a broken blender in this town than it is to recall a rogue politician. And that’s not right,” Rossi said. “Under the current system, voters cast their ballot and hope for the best. It’s a four-year blank cheque.”
Public consultation would help determine the threshold number for a recall, he said.
Rossi isn’t faring well in recent public opinion polls. The most recent survey put him in fifth place behind Rob Ford, George Smitherman, Sarah Thomson and Joe Pantalone.
