Embattled Oakland Mayor Jean Quan has one official group collecting signaturesfor her removal, and at least two unofficial groups that have organized.
The Official Remove Jean Quan website is active this morning, ran by Gene Hazzard, an Oakland Post photographer and member of the Oakland Black Caucus. The group has 160 days to collect 20,000 Oakland voters' signatures.
Hazzard's group edged out two other groups that formed, according to SFGate, because he was too controlling in his methods.
One of the groups is led by Gene Harland, who ran against Quan for mayor last year. Harland told the Gate that his group is ready to go to court, having hired a veteran campaign lawyer. The other is the Committee to Recall Jean Quan and Restore Oakland. The latter will circulate Hazzard's petition.
Quan told the San Jose Mercury News, "The last thing we need is a divisive and expensive recall election."
The recall election would run concurrent with the next mayor's race, but whether or not ranked-choice would be incorporated in either runoff.
Voters can request petitions from the official website, under the FAQ section.
