Recall
From Wikinfo
In a democracy, representative recall is a procedure by which constituents can remove a representative from office before his or her term is completed.
This is considered an instrument of direct democracy or mediated direct democracy. Some consider this measure alone sufficient to satisfy grassroots democracy advocates, but most find it inadequate without other measures, e.g. referendum, electoral reform, bioregional democracy, that increase political accountability, and increase the role of citizens.
The Canadian province of British Columbia has representative recall. In that province, voters in a provincial riding/district can petition to have a sitting representative removed from office, even a Premier presently leading a government. If enough voters sign the petition, a referendum is held, and if successful a by-election is held as soon as possible, so that politician can be replaced. Fourteen U.S. states have similar measures in their constitutions - and many more municipalities - but generally these measures are harder to implement than in B.C., where in January 2003 there were a record twenty-two such recall efforts (all of which ultimately failed, however).
Gray Davis, the 37th Governor of California was forced to face a recall election in 2003, after several million citizens petitioned the government for a gubernatorial by-election. The only other governor in American history to face a successful recall was North Dakota Gov. Lynn Frazier who was removed from office in 1921.
It is not always necessary for an actual law to be applied to all representatives. If party discipline is effective and existing laws give parties the power to disempower sitting representatives, then an informal system of representative recall is possible. Again in Canada, the federal Canadian Alliance Party has made representative recall part of its platform for electoral reform, and implements it (in a way) within its party. If the members of any CA riding association vote to recall a CA federal Member of Parliament presently in office, that representative is denied all funds and support for re-election, and other CA members cannot sit in caucus with them, nor share party funds with them. In effect, these measures force the resignation of the recalled member, as they become ineffective due to political isolation, social pressure and ridicule.
See also: representative democracy, electoral reform, grassroots democracy
References
- Adapted from the Wikipedia article, "Representative recall" http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Representative_recall July 25, 2003
