recall couy griffin recall couy griffin

FILE - In this Friday, Jan. 31, 2020 file photo, Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin speaks in Santa Fe, N.M., during a gun rights rally. Griffin denies allegations that he knowingly entering barricaded areas of the Capitol grounds with the intent of disrupting government as Congress considered the 2020 Electoral College results, though he openly ascribes to unsubstantiated claims of fraud in the 2020 election. Griffin has five calendar days to file an appeal to the New Mexico Supreme Court. A successful recall election would have allowed Democratic Gov. [2] While Griffin was present at the hearing, he was able to answer to the allegations against him and rebut Committee To Recall CouyGriffin President Paul Sanchez. At the time, Sanchez thought that Second Judicial District Judge Manuel Arrieta had to sign off on the petition, when the petition only needed a stamp from the court clerk's office. For the recall to proceed, Arrieta must sign the petition to recall, triggering a 90 day deadline for the Recall Committee to get the required signatures. Contacted Monday, Griffin called the recall initiative frivolous and vowed to stand strong. Griffins term runs through 2022. "We are grateful for this opportunity to provide the registered votersof Otero County District 2 the chance to decide if Commissioner Griffin is still the person they want to continue to represent them on the county commission as well as nationwide," Committee to Recall Couy Griffin spokesman Paul Sanchez said. Contact us at editor@ballotpedia.org. And they have criticizing Griffins pursuit of travel reimbursements from taxpayers in Otero County for a cross-country trip in 2019 that culminated in a visit with Trump at the White House. I just want those that have already come to the conclusion that Im guilty, I just again ask you to put the brakes on a little bit and let the legal process take place, Griffin said. The effort to recall Otero County District 2 Commissioner Couy Griffin failed by 345 signatures. Otherwise, Griffin is up for possible re-election in 2022 for a second, four-year term. Retired military veteran Paul Sanchez and other members of the Committee to Recall Couy Griffin are accusing Griffin of using his elected county position for personal gain. 2023 www.alamogordonews.com. A full contingent of signatures would have allowed the recall question to be placed a special election ballot. As of Aug. 24, the petition to recall Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin has collected 853 of the required 1,574 signatures. The hearing was held in the old Otero County Commission Chambers in the Otero County Courthouse across the street from the Otero County Administration Building. SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) A political committee has begun circulating a petition to recall Cowboys or Trump founder Couy Griffin from public office as a commissioner in Otero County. All rights reserved. Ivey-Soto requested that the stamp on the facepage of the petition not be affixed until the sixth day following the April 8 hearing unless Griffin files the appeal. In a 50-minute online documentary and political origin story released in August, Griffin recounts his own travails inside a Washington, D.C., jail for nearly three weeks after his arrest in the run-up to President Joe Bidens inauguration. The petition to recall Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin began circulation on July 1. FILE - In this May 13, 2021, file photo, Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin presides at a public meeting in Alamogordo, N.M., in a shirt with a "C4T" logo that stands for Cowboys for Trump. After Griffin was arrested, District 1 Commissioner Gerald Matherly (R) and District 3 Commissioner Vickie Marquardt (R) called for his resignation, as did New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas (D). "The Committee to Recall Couy Griffin has received the official petition to Recall Otero County District . Those voters in my district are constitutional conservatives. A state district court judge says an effort can move ahead to try and recall Griffin, the Cowboys for Trump founder from his seat as an Otero County commissioner on accusations of using his public office for personal gain. Nicole Maxwell can be contacted by email at nmaxwell@alamogordonews.com, by phone at 575-415-6605 or on Twitter at @nicmaxreporter. The district court stay was denied by Third Judicial District . "We are still striving to get the signatures by Sept. 8in order to get the recall initiative on the November ballot instead of a special election," a press release from to recall effort states. Backers of the petition drive in Otero County say they still need to collect several hundred additional signatures by next Wednesday to trigger a special recall election against Griffin. He is also awaiting trialon charges ofknowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authorityfor his alleged role in the Jan. 6 riots at the U.S. Capitol. A Democrat last sat on the Otero County Commission in 1994. Griffinrequested for the case to be dismissed and if it was not dismissed then he filed a demand for a jury trial in the case. All rights reserved. Feb 3, 2021. More:Griffin recall to begin collecting signatures on Mescalero Reservation. Any person who makes statements like these does not have any place in Otero County Politics, no less an elected office. A public fundraising effort to benefit Griffin is underway through the online crowdsource platform GiveSendGo that has raised at least $41,500 including a $10,000 anonymous donation and gifts as small as $5. A publicly appointed defense attorney is representing Griffin in the Jan. 6 case, and Griffin says he is represented by Powell free of charge in his lawsuit against the New Mexico secretary of state. These allegations are that Griffin failed to attend Otero County Commission meetings properly when he attended them telephonically while he was on his political group, Cowboys for Trump, business outsidethe county; conduct resulting in Griffin's banishment from the Mescalero Apache Reservation; using Otero County resources for Cowboys for Trump business; filing an improper travel voucher and failing to "exercise proper fiduciary responsibility; and violating the Gift Act when he asked for and received $3,500 from a restricted donor, the petition states. Otero County Clerk Robyn Holmes says a successful petition would put the question on the November general election ballot for local, nonpartisan races. SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) An effort to recall the founder of Cowboys for Trump from his public office as a county commissioner can move forward, under an order Monday of the New Mexico state Supreme Court. The second amended complaint against Griffin is 141 pages long and alleges failed to meet his duties as a public servant, including missing regular Otero County meetings. Griffin says that Cowboys for Trump is a for-profit endeavor that is not subject to financial disclosure requirements for political organizations. FILE - In this Friday, Jan. 31, 2020 file photo, Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin speaks in Santa Fe, N.M., during a gun rights rally. In 2021, a committee began circulating a petition to recall Griffin from office, accusing him of missing numerous county meetings, . "It is now in their hands.". Michelle Lujan Grisham to select an interim replacement. The filing also noted that Griffin inappropriately filed a travel voucher for a trip to Washington, D.C. and for allegedly violating the Gift Act when he accepted a $3,500 donation from a restricted donor to pay back the travel voucher. Several of the allegations listed in the recall petition are among the things for which Griffin is being investigated by the New Mexico Attorney General's Office. Arrieta was assigned to the recall case after all of the 12th Judicial District judges recused themselves. SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) An effort to recall the founder of Cowboys for Trump from his public office as a county commissioner can move forward, under an order Monday of the New Mexico state Supreme Court. ALAMOGORDO, New Mexico A political committee has begun circulating a petition to recall Cowboys for Trump founder Couy Griffin from public office as a commissioner in Otero County. Bill) Richardson appointed judge in Manuel Arrieta," Griffin said in an email April 7. In a written order, state Supreme Court justices unanimously rejected an appeal from Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin and upheld a lower court ruling that found adequate reasons for voters to circulate a recall petition. Michael E. Vigil, Chief Justice of the New Mexico Supreme Court affirmed, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. I mean, how much bigger representation can you bring to Otero County? Griffin said. Griffin says the money helped him travel to Phoenix last week for a Justice for January 6 rally. Griffin, 47, once led his Republican posse on a ride from . The Otero County Clerk's Office, although not a participant in the recall proceedings, is interested to ensure that, if a recall is triggered, it is done in an orderly and clear fashion "so the voters are clear on the process," Ivey-Soto said. Michelle Lujan Grisham would name a replacement. Among the listed causes for recall were Griffin's attendance of Otero County Commission meetings by phone rather than in person,his banishment from the Mescalero Apache Reservation andthe alleged use of Otero County Commissioneroffices for personal business. (AP Photo/Morgan Lee), Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. Im really financially strained all the time. The Committee said its fundraising report would be delivered to the state Oct. 4. He sees himself . The recall is one of several legal battles which Griffin finds himself in, including a federal trespassing charge for which he was arrested on Jan. 18. That travel voucher was approved and a check was cut to Griffin in the amount of$3,237.48. Otero County Clerk Robyn Holmes said the petition is due by 5 p.m. Wednesday. Arrietaexplained that this case does not warrant a jury trial since the April 8 hearing was most likely to be the only hearing in the case and that a verdict was not to be administered and if a recall petition is successful and a recall election imminent, then the voters of Otero County's District 2 would be the jury. The hearing continued for about an hour after Griffin exited the hearing. A state district court judge this month found good cause for a recall petition, but Griffin says the hearing took place unjustly at the same time as an Otero County commission meeting where he was being pressured to resign. A successful petition with enough signatures would trigger a special election vote on whether Griffin can finish his four-year term in office. I would have wanted him to have the opportunity to argue his points here," Sanchez said. Separately, Griffin is confronting federal charges in connection with the U.S. Capitol siege on Jan. 6, where he appeared on an outdoor terrace and attempted to lead a prayer. New Mexico allows recalls at the county level for malfeasance or misfeasance in office or violation of the oath of office by the official concerned. Those actions must have occurred during the officials current term of office in order for a recall effort to be approved to circulate petitions. SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) A political committee has begun circulating a petition to recall Cowboys or Trump founder Couy Griffin from public office as a commissioner in Otero County. Griffin described the charges as frivolous and blamed county staff for providing bad guidance on travel reimbursements. This story has been updated with a statement from Couy Griffin and more information about the recall process. In comparison, we tracked between 72 and 155 efforts by the midpoints of 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020. Scott Fredrick, a member of a political committee to recall Griffin, said Thursday that the effort was still about 400 registered voters shy of the 1,574 signatures needed to force an election after extensive canvassing. Griffin says the group is a for-profit endeavor that is not subject to financial disclosure requirement for political organizations. The Committee to Recall Couy Griffin, Otero County District 2 Commissioner, NEEDS YOUR HELP!! He's also been suspended from Facebook and banished from Native American lands in his district as he contests charges of. 2023 www.alamogordonews.com. Third Judicial District court Judge Manuel Arrieta determined probable cause existed to proceed with a recall lawsuit filed against Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin, initiating procedures to remove Griffin from public office. Prior to Griffin's leaving the hearing, Arrieta told him that the Otero County Commission would have a quorum present without Griffin and that this hearing may be more important at this time. They say Griffin skipped commission meetings and used his county office space to solicit contributions to Cowboys for Trump that covered his personal expenses. I still have a lot of confidence in the people in my district, Griffin said. A state district court judge says an effort can move ahead to try and recall Griffin, the Cowboys for Trump founder from his seat as an Otero County commissioner on accusations of using his public office for personal gain. The original civil complaint was filed March 11 with amended complaints filed March 24 and April 5 by the Committee to Recall Couy Griffin. Griffin is revered and reviled in politically conservative Otero County as he confronts criminal charges for joining protests on the steps of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. 2023 www.alamogordonews.com. And I think Im in tune with them.. "The fact that the committees efforts were unsuccessful will be upsetting to some and rewarding to others," a Facebook post by the Committee read. Cowboys For Trump was founded by Griffin in 2019 as a for-profit entity to promote the political agenda of then-president Donald Trump. New Mexico Supreme Court Chief Justice Michael Vigil on June 28 affirmed a lower courts ruling to allow an effort to recall Couy Griffin (R) from his position as the District 2 representative on the Otero County Commission to move forward. "It is not intended for simple disagreements and so the judge having made the decision, there's a process that we must follow now and part of that is whether or not Commissioner Griffin decides to file an appeal. Griffin was arrested in Washington after vowing to take his guns to the inauguration of President Joe Biden, and has pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor criminal charges in connection with the siege on the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6, where he appeared on an outdoor terrace and attempted to lead the crowd in prayer. Griffin said the allegations against him were baseless and politically motivated. "The fight is far from over," Griffin said. The petition has to be validated prior to a recall election taking place. Ballotpedia is the digital encyclopedia of American politics and elections. Recall supporters said Griffin had used the office for personal gain. And Im damn sure no quitter!!". Griffin appeared at the hearing telephonically. "He had as much right to due process as we do and the judge very much made it clear and afforded him that right. I believe I still have much support in my district. "I would rather these allegation brought forward be heard from a group of peers rather than a (former Gov. Griffin was released from federal prison on Feb. 5. A statement dated Jan. 19 by Otero County, New Mexico, commissioners following the Jan. 17 arrest of fellow commissioner Couy Griffin, 47, following his arrest on . Griffin said he planned to fight the recall, though he no longer has the option to do that via the courts. "The Committee to Recall Couy Griffin is very pleased that we have been found with probable cause, no less for all five of the allegations we presented.". Their actions should represent the best interest of their constituents and spend tax payer money responsibly," the Committee statement read. He said he was accused of crimes but not convicted. The petition to recall Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin began circulation on July 1. The Committee was given a 90-day window to collect the required statutory 33.3% of signatures by New Mexico Third Judicial District Judge Manuel Arrieta, after Griffin's appeal to the New Mexico Supreme Court failed. Griffin has called those allegations frivolous, baseless and politically motivated. If we quit we lose. Griffin's motion for dismissal was heard in theApril 8 recall hearing and denied. The Otero County Commission discussed the aftermath of Couy Griffin's statement. 1 of 2. Jessica Onsurez can be reached at jonsurez@gannett.com, @JussGREAT on Twitter at by phone at 575-628-5531. You know, they believe in individual freedoms and individual liberties. Griffin was present at the hearing for for about 45 minutesbefore he excused himself and returned to the Otero County Commission meeting. Recall committee spokesman Scott Fredrick said a petition drive collected 1,229 signatures from registered voters in Griffins Otero County district, short of what they needed to trigger a special election. Forinformation on the recall petition call the recall hotline 575-629-0908 or call Griffin at575-415-5782. Only the March 11 complaint was heard in the April 8. Couy Griffin, who was charged for breaching the Capitol grounds on Jan. 6, is disappointed the former president didn't follow through on his promise to jail Hillary Clinton. The recall committee needs to collect about 1,540 signatures from registered voters in Griffins district to trigger a vote on whether Griffin stays in office through 2022. Just a small donation to get the most dangerous County Commissioner we've EVER had removed from office! SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) A state district court judge says an effort can move ahead to try and recall Cowboys for Trump founder Couy Griffin from his seat as an Otero County commissioner on accusations of using the office for personal gain. Nicole Maxwell can be contacted by email at nmaxwell@alamogordonews.com, by phone at 575-415-6605 or on Twitter at @nicmaxreporter. Why not subscribe? Officials at the Otero County clerks office were unavailable Monday to confirm requirements and deadlines in the recall drive. We are grateful for this opportunity to provide the registered voters of Otero County the chance to decide if Commissioner Griffin is still the person they want to continue to represent them on the county commission, as well as nationwide, the Committee to Recall Couy Griffin said in a statement.