Petition seeks recall of Ferriday mayor, others
Published 12:00 am Friday, May 9, 2003
FERRIDAY, La. &045; A petition to recall Ferriday Mayor Glen McGlothin and Town Council members Sammy Davis Jr., Dorothy Johnson and Jerome Harris was filed with the Secretary of State’s Office on March 11.
Elijah Banks, who used to own a nightclub in Ferriday, is the chairman of the filing and LaRhonda Smith is the vice chairman.
Neither party was available for comment.
Banks and Smith have 180 days from the date of filing to acquire one-third of the town’s registered voters to sign a petition, which can be submitted back to the Secretary of State’s Office. The petition would be forwarded to Gov. Mike Foster’s office.
After the Attorney General’s Office reviews the petition to make sure it meets all requirements, the governor’s office will then set a date for an election on whether the mayor and jurors should be recalled.
If a majority of those voting in that election voted to recall those officials, they would lose their positions and the Secretary of State’s Office would set a date for an election to fill the posts.
McGlothin said this is the fourth time someone has tried to recall him.
&uot;I don’t feel anything about it,&uot; McGlothin said.
&uot;I can’t worry about them because I have a job to do,&uot; he said.
Since he took office in 2000, a recall petition was filed on McGlothin charging that he was partial to white citizens, failed to bring in new businesses and address the problem of stray dogs, and cost the town thousands of dollars in grant money.
At the time of the past recall filing, McGlothin defended himself on each charge.
Harris said this is the first time he has had a recall filed against him.
&uot;If (Banks) wants to call a recall on me that’s his right,&uot; Harris said.
A spokesperson at the Secretary of State’s Office said no information regarding reasons for the filing was submitted.