Laws governing recall in Texas

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Recall of local elected officials in Texas is available only in political subdivisions that have their own charter, and only if their charter specifically authorizes recall of the local elected officials.

Texas has about 1,200 cities and 352 of those cities have their own charter. In the terminology of the state, these are known as the "home rule cities." To become a "home rule city" or a "charter city," the population of the city must be over 5,000 and its voters must have held an election to adopt a home rule charter. Over 90% of the state's home rule cities, or close to 320 of them, do include a local recall provision.[1]

Features of the laws

Because recall is defined individually only in specific local charters, and is not defined in state statutes or the Texas Constitution, the laws that govern the available procedures, such as how many signatures are required to force a recall election, can and do vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction within the state. For example, Terrell Blodgett's 1994 book on Texas home rule cities noted that signature requirements vary from 3% to 51% and can be based on the number of votes cast in the most recent municipal election, the number of registered voters in the city, or other factors.[2][3]

See also

External links


  1. Scott Houston, general counsel of the Texas Municipal League, stated in an email to Leslie Graves, Ballotpedia's editor, on January 21, 2011 that 90% of the state's home rule cities include recall provisions in their charters.
  2. Texas State University E-Commons, "An Analysis of Texas' Municipal Home Rule Charters Since 1994," John V. McDonald, August 1, 2000, p. 31
  3. San Antonio Express-News, "Unusual ballot features Fredericksburg councilman as recall target and mayoral contender," May 3, 2012