More than 50,000 Calgarians have signed the official petition that could spell the end for Jyoti Gondek as the city’s mayor, according to Landon Johnston, the organizer of the campaign.
Johnston told The Counter Signal that the biggest hurdle is making sure volunteers return petition pages to commissioners.
Johnston says the number of signees has surpassed 50,000 people, and could be as high as 70,000 as forms trickle in to commissioners.
He hopes they will get 100,000 before a rally he is hosting at City Hall on Saturday, March 2.
“We are at roughly 50,000 – 70,000 signatures and are asking anyone to begin handing their petitions and affidavits into their nearest commissioner,” Johnston said.
“We have additional petition forms available at www.recallmayorgondek.com. Everyone has been doing an amazing job and we are hoping to hit 100,000 signatures by next weekend.”
The City of Calgary confirmed the reception of the recall petition against Mayor Gondek on January 30.
Recall Gondek signature drive helped by 80 volunteers
At least 80 volunteers have signed up as volunteers, serving as Commissioners of Oath, in the official signature drive to fire Gondek.
How to sign
There are a few ways for Calgary residents to sign the petition.
One way is to go to a signature drive event, such as the upcoming one on Saturday February 24 at 96th Street W between 9am and 2pm MT.
Another way is to travel to a local commissioner’s location, out of the 80 who have volunteered to help collect signatures.
Johnston’s website shows a list of Commissioners who are serving as volunteers to collect signatures in various neighbourhoods.
The petition action leverages the 2022 amendments to the Municipal Government Act, permitting the recall of municipal officials through a structured process.
Mayor Gondek’s popularity has notably waned, as highlighted by recent ThinkHQ data
A recent survey conducted among 1,116 Calgarians revealed a mere 30% approval rating for her performance, with a significant 61% expressing disapproval.
Here are the top 10 reasons Calgarians are pining to put Gondek on EI.