Juneau residents line up outside of the Planet Alaska Gallery to sign an application petition to recall Gov. Mike Dunleavy on Thursday, Aug. 1, 2019. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire File)

Juneau residents line up outside of the Planet Alaska Gallery to sign an application petition to recall Gov. Mike Dunleavy on Thursday, Aug. 1, 2019. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire File)

Governor recall campaign kicks off signature gathering across state

Campaign holds events at Centennial Hall Saturday and Sunday

The Recall Dunleavy campaign is launching the second phase of the recall process with signature gathering events across the state this weekend, as part of its ongoing effort to recall Gov. Mike Dunleavy.

Starting in Anchorage on Friday, the campaign is trying to get as many signatures as possible as quickly as possible to gather the 71,252 signatures needed to file a recall application.

“We want this question to be one that Alaskans have the opportunity to answer as soon as possible,” said Claire Pywell, campaign manager for Recall Dunleavy.

In Juneau, signature gathering events will be held at Centennial Hall Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Signatures can still be gathered after the weekend, but all signatures must be made in person, according to state law.

The campaign has until 180 days before the end of the governor’s term to collect the signatures needed Pywell said. If the signatures are submitted, the Division of Elections will then have 30 days to certify all the signatures on the application.

Following the certification process, DOE has 60-90 days with which to call an election. If there’s an already scheduled statewide election within that window, the question will be added to that ballot, according to Brian Jackson, program manager for DOE.

Depending on when the recall campaign submits their signature booklets, Alaskans could vote to recall the governor during the state’s primary election on Aug. 18, or in the general election Nov. 4. If the question were to appear on the primary ballot, Alaskans would be able to vote regardless of party affiliation, Jackson said.

The campaign’s petition for recall is still technically in the courts, but earlier this month the Alaska Supreme Court allowed for the second phase of signature-gathering to begin.

The recall campaign began in August of last year following the governor’s announcement in July he intended to veto $444 million from the state budget crafted by the legislature.

When the campaign submitted its petition for recall in November, the Department of Law denied the request calling it, “both factually and legally insufficient to meet the statutory grounds for recall.”

Recall Dunleavy sued, and the case will be heard before the Alaska Supreme Court on March 25, according to Pywell.

On Feb. 18, a group supporting Dunleavy, which had been named as an intervener in the court case, dropped out of the legal proceedings.

The group, Stand Tall With Mike, said in a statement, “further participation in the legal process would not be a productive use of its resources,” and that it would put its efforts towards an eventual election.

Stand Tall With Mike also raised questions about whether Alaska Supreme Court Justice Joel Bolger could rule impartially on the matter, given that part of the stated grounds for recall are that the governor improperly used his veto authority to “attack the judiciary.

Dunleavy spokesperson Jeff Turner said in an email Friday the governor’s office could not comment for this article because it was a campaign issue.

• Contact reporter Peter Segall at 523-2228 or psegall@juneauempire.com.

More in News

(Juneau Empire File)
Aurora forecast for the week of Nov. 27

These forecasts are courtesy of the University of Alaska Fairbanks’ Geophysical Institute… Continue reading

Girls teams face off on the twin courts of the main gym at Juneau-Douglas Yadaa.at Kalé High School during the Juneau Invitational Volleyball Extravaganza on Oct. 15, 2022. The Juneau Board of Education on Friday unanimously voted to seek advice from outside council on a new state policy banning transgender girls from high school sports teams. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire file photo)
School board unanimously votes to seek outside legal advice on new statewide transgender sports ban

Juneau reportedly first district to take step that may lead to lawsuit challenging policy.

A Capital City Fire/Rescue truck parks outside the main entrance of the Riverview Senior Living complex Monday after Nathan Bishop, 58, is found alive in the attic 40 hours after being reported missing from the facility where he is a resident. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
State reviewing Riverview Senior Living after missing resident found in attic 40 hours later

Officials unaware of similar cases in Alaska; facility says steps to prevent such incidents underway

Search and rescue officials examine the area about 11 miles south of the center of Wrangell where a landslide occurred on Nov. 20. Five people are confirmed dead from the landslide and one still missing. (Photo courtesy of Alaska Department of Public Safety)
Body of fifth Wrangell landslide victim found; one person still missing

Otto Florschutz, 65, found Thursday evening; Derek Heller, 12, still missing among family of five.

Varieties of kelp are seen underwater. A U.S. Department of Energy-funded project will investigate whether kelp and other seaweed in the waters off Alaska’s Prince of Wales Island can absorb significant amounts of rare earth elements that leach out from the Bokan Mountain site. (National Marine Sanctuary photo provided by NOAA)
Federally funded project will search for rare earth elements in Southeast Alaska seaweed

What if prized rare earth elements could be extracted from seaweed, avoiding… Continue reading

Angie Flick (center), finance director for the City and Borough of Juneau, provides details of an early draft of next year’s municipal budget to Assembly members as City Manager Katie Koester (left) and Budget Manager Adrien Wendel listen during a Finance Committee meeting Wednesday night in the Assembly Chambers. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Assembly members prepare to retreat so they can move ahead on next year’s budget

“Very draft” $190 million spending plan for FY25 based on status quo has $1 million deficit.

(Michael Penn / Juneau Empire File)
Police calls for Monday, Nov. 27, 2023

This report contains public information from law enforcement and public safety agencies.

The front page of the Juneau Empire on Nov. 30, 2005. (Photo by Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Empire Archives: Juneau’s history for the week of Dec. 3

Three decades of capital city coverage.

Cheyenne Latu (left), a pharmacy technician at Ron’s Apothecary Shoppe, and business co-owner Gretchen Watts hang a poster at the front counter Thursday announcing the store’s closure after Dec. 6 as Jessica Kirtley, another pharmacy technician, works at the front register. The nearby Safeway supermarket has agreed to take the prescriptions of all customers as well as hire all of the independent pharmacy’s employees, according to the co-owners who are retiring. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Ron’s Apothecary Shoppe closing after nearly 50 years as co-owners retire; last day is Dec. 6

Safeway taking over all prescriptions and offering jobs to all employees, according to owners.

Most Read