Ballotpedia is the digital encyclopedia of American politics and elections. Commissioner Griffin's rhetoric is only getting worse. The petition, filed by the Committee to Recall Couy Griffin, alleged he failed to perform his duties as an elected official by missing scheduled county meetings, failed to "exercise proper fiduciary responsibility" when he filed an improper travel voucher,violated the New Mexico Gift Act, acted in a way which resulted in a ban from the Mescalero Apache Reservation and improperly used County resources to further his work for Cowboys For Trump. "The Committee to Recall Couy Griffin has received the official petition to Recall Otero County District 2 CommissionerCouy Griffin today (July 1)," Committee to Recall Couy Griffin today,"spokesman Paul Sanchez said. The regular Otero County Commission meeting that had begun at 9 a.m. and was still underway into the afternoon had recessed to allow him to attend the hearing. (AP Photo/Morgan Lee, File), Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. Recall supporters did not collect enough signatures by the deadline on September 28, 2021. In the first half of 2021, Ballotpedia tracked 164 recall efforts against 262 officials. 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). 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. 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. Once the recall is allowed to begin, the recall petition is taken to Otero County District 2 voters and if 1,661 verified signatures are gathered, then a recall election takes place. ? Otero County Commission talks aftermath of Couy Griffin statement. 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 . The Committee to Recall Couy Griffin, Otero County District 2 Commissioner, NEEDS YOUR HELP!! Griffin was accused of trespassing onto the west steps of the Capitol Building Jan. 6. They say Griffin skipped commission meetings and used his county office space to solicit contributions to Cowboys for Trump that covered his personal expenses. 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. All rights reserved. "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. petition to recall Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin, Griffin recall to begin collecting signatures on Mescalero Reservation, banishment from the Mescalero Apache Reservation, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. Griffin described the charges as frivolous and blamed county staff for providing bad guidance on travel reimbursements. The Committee to Recall Couy Griffin, Otero County District 2 Commissioner, NEEDS YOUR HELP!! Cowboys for Trump . All rights reserved. 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. Also, please use our hashtag #recallcouygriffin in your shares and comments, this is how we spread the word!! If we quit we lose. 296. Griffin formed Cowboys for Trump in 2019 with a group of rodeo acquaintances, vowing to hold horseback-riding parades nationwide in support of Trump. The effort to recall Otero County District 2 Commissioner Couy Griffin failed by 345 signatures. (AP Photo/Morgan Lee), Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. You know, they believe in individual freedoms and individual liberties. 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. The petition to recall Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin began circulation on July 1. 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. Officials at the Otero County clerks office were unavailable Monday to confirm requirements and deadlines in the recall drive. In comparison, we tracked between 72 and 155 efforts by the midpoints of 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020. The Committee to Recall Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffinreminded residentsthat the change.orgpetitioncirculating is not a legal document and cannot be used to trigger a recall election. The vicious Democrat recall against Republican Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin has officially failed, collecting only 1,229 signatures from voters, short of the amount needed to trigger a special election. "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. He said he was accused of crimes but not convicted. Griffin appealed Arrieta's ruling to the New Mexico Supreme Court which in turn affirmed the ruling. "On the decision, I am obviously very pleased," Sanchez said. Griffin is reviled and revered in politically conservative Otero County as he confronts criminal charges for joining protests on the steps of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. Cowboys for Trump has held horseback-riding parades across the country in support of President Donald Trump. The Committee said its fundraising report would be delivered to the state Oct. 4. Today, Couy Griffin is divorced, disparaged by family and confronts a political recall drive, a state corruption investigation and federal charges. Griffin says the film about him was put together by Trump-allied attorney Sidney Powell and her group, Defending the Republic. 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. If allowed, a recall petition against Griffin with a sufficient number of signatures could trigger a special election within months. Griffin was released from federal prison on Feb. 5. Griffin said he planned to fight the recall, though he no longer has the option to do that via the courts. 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. 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. 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 was elected to the three-member commission in 2018, defeating Democratic candidate Christopher S. Jones with 65% of the vote. "The Committee to Recall Couy Griffin has received the official petition to Recall Otero County District . 2023 www.alamogordonews.com. As of Aug. 24, the petition to recall Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin has collected 853 of the required 1,574 signatures. For information on the recall petition call the recall hotline 575-629-0908 or call. The case cannot be reheard and the "order serves as the Court's mandate returning jurisdiction to the district court,"New Mexico Administrative Office of the Courts spokesman Barry Massey said. "He had as much right to due process as we do and the judge very much made it clear and afforded him that right. A full contingent of signatures. Griffin is under scrutinybased on five allegations that led New Mexico Third Judicial District Judge Manuel Arrieta to find probable cause for a recall. 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 said he had not decided on whether to seek re-election to his seat on the Commission, saying he was entertaining different options for his political future. This ruling said the process of recalling Griffin from his elected office, a decision first assertedApril 8 byThird Judicial District Court Judge Manuel Arrieta, may proceed. 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. This story has been updated with a statement from Couy Griffin and more information about the recall process. 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. Since we didnt meet the signature threshold, there is no next step, said Fredrick, conceding defeat Tuesday night. Today, Couy Griffin is divorced, disparaged by family and confronts a political recall drive, a state corruption investigation and federal charges. Otero County Clerk Robyn Holmes said the petition is due by 5 p.m. Wednesday. So its been a blessing.. 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. Federal prosecutors have offered Cowboys for Trump founder Couy Griffin a plea agreement over charges that he illegally entered barricades during the deadly riot at the U.S. Capitol on January. Of a reported $5,000 collected, $300 remain in the Committees coffers. "Recall is intended to be difficult and it is intended to be a very serious matter,"Ivey-Soto said. 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. The failed recall petition accused Griffin of failing to attend commission meetings, using his elected position for personal gain in promoting a support group for former President Donald Trump, improper travel vouchers and violating state restrictions on gifts to public officials. Griffin says he didnt directly witness violence at the Capitol on Jan. 6 but believes it was perpetrated by militant leftists and not Trump supporters, contrary to extensive evidence. Griffin, who founded the organization Cowboys for Trump, was arrested in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 17, for his alleged role in the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. Griffin appealed Arrieta's ruling to the New Mexico Supreme Court which in turn affirmed the ruling. The petition alleges that Griffin neglected and misused his position as a county commissioner while skipping public meetings and promoting a support group for President Donald Trump that Griffin treated as a for-profit business. They say Griffin used his office to solicit contributions to Cowboys for Trump that covered his personal expenses. 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. A successful recall election would have allowed Democratic Gov. 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. Griffin also is challenging directives by state election regulators to register Cowboys for Trump as a political committee, arguing that financial disclosures would subject contributors to harassment. In a written order, state Supreme Court justices unanimously rejected an appeal from Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin and upheld a . More:Griffin gets guns back, but only at home, Although Griffin's trip to Washington, D.C. in September 2019 was initially for the proper reason of attending a regional county commissioners conference, the reason stated on a travel voucher submitted by Griffin was "meeting with President.". "We look forward to providing the voters of District 2 the opportunity to decide if they wish to keep Commissioner Griffin in office or remove him," Sanchez said.