-By Warner Todd Huston
The State legislature has approved a governor recall initiative for the 2010 ballot today.
When Illinois voters go to the polls in 2010 they will have the opportunity to vote to amend the Illinois Constitution to allow for a recall of an errant governor… finally.
In November of 2010, if 60 percent of Illinois voters vote “yes,” Illinois will at last be able to rid themselves of the sort of criminals with whom it has so often been saddled.
The current initiative, though, will not create a simple “vote them out” process to eliminate a criminal governor. Several provisions will have to be satisfied to facilitate the removal of a governor. One requirement will be that 30 legislators will have to vote to remove; 20 State Reps and 10 Senators (and no more than half of those voting must be of the same party).
Another one of the provisions is that the citizens must raise signatures on a removal petition counting 15 percent of the total number of voters that voted in the previous election. This petition will have a five month period for the names to be gathered.
After these provisions are met, then a special election will be called with the Lt. Gov. serving in the big chair in the mean time.
There was one “no” vote on the decision to put the recall initiative on the ballot. State Senator Mike Jacobs (D, East Moline) said that a recall law would “lessen the independence of a governor.”
If Illinois approves of the recall law, she will join 18 other states and the District of Columbia that permit a recall of state officials.
Alaska
Arizona
California
Colorado
Georgia
Idaho
Kansas
Louisiana
Michigan
Minnesota
Montana
Nevada
New Jersey
North Dakota
Oregon
Rhode Island
Washington
Wisconsin
Washington D.C.
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Warner Todd Huston is a Chicago based freelance writer, has been writing opinion editorials and social criticism since early 2001 and is featured on many websites such as NewsBusters.org, RightWingNews.com, CanadaFreePress.com, StoptheACLU.com, TheRealityCheck.org, RedState.com, Human Events Magazine, AmericanDailyReview.com, and the New Media Journal, among many, many others. Additionally, he has been a frequent guest on talk-radio programs to discuss his opinion editorials and current events and is currently the co-host of “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Conservatism” heard on BlogTalkRadio. Warner is also the editor of the Cook County Page for RedCounty.com.
He has also written for several history magazines and appears in the new book “Americans on Politics, Policy and Pop Culture” which can be purchased on amazon.com. He is also the owner and operator of PubliusForum.com. Feel free to contact him with any comments or questions : EMAIL Warner Todd Huston
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