The Anchorage Assembly decided today to move up the recall election for Meg Zaletel to Oct. 26.
Earlier, it had been looking for dates in November, but opponents of the recall had pressed hard for an earlier date in order to mobilize the leftist ballot harvesting ground game.
Ballots will go out about Oct. 10.
Zaletel is subject to a recall in District 4, which is midtown Anchorage.
Her critics are unhappy with her performance on the Assembly, where she prioritizes the needs of the homeless at the expense and danger of taxpayers and family neighborhoods. She was part of the move to purchase hotels for vagrants and drug addicts, a plan put in place by former Mayor Ethan Berkowitz last summer.
The effort to recall Zaletel began a year ago, but she blocked it with various court delays. Finally, the Alaska Supreme Court agreed that Alaska law allows lawmakers to be recalled for just about anything, and they gave the Municipality orders to proceed.
Russell Biggs and a loose group of grassroots activists under the banners of “Reclaim Midtown” and “Save Anchorage” mobilized to gather over 4,000 signatures from District 4.
Because the cost of a special election is significant, Assemblyman Chris Constant said that District 4 should have to pay for it. It was a suggestion that didn’t gain much support.
