Komrosky to face recall election
The Riverside County Registrar of Voters verified more than enough petition signatures. What happens next?
On January 22, 2024, the Riverside County Registrar of Voters (ROV) reported that their office had verified 4,884 signatures on the petition requesting a recall election for Temecula School Board Trustee Joseph Komrosky. A minimum of 4,280 were required to force a recall election.
All signatures were from registered voters in Komrosky’s Trustee Area, #4, where they represent more than 20% of all registered voters. The One Temecula Valley PAC (1TVPAC) headed the signature gathering, working with a large group of volunteers between August and December 2023 to gain the required number.
What’s next?
By February 5 (within 14 days of verification), the TVUSD School Board must issue an Order of Election and set the date. If they don’t, the Riverside Registrar of Voters will do it for them.
The date for the election will be sometime between May 3 and June 14, 2024. The ballot will simply ask whether Joseph Komrosky should be removed from office, and voters will choose Yes or No.
If a majority vote Yes, Komrosky is automatically removed.
Depending on timing, the remaining school board members may be able to appoint someone to fill the vacancy until the regular election on November 5, 2024. If an appointment can’t be made, a replacement will be elected in November.
How does the recall relate to Gonzalez’s resignation?
Trustee Danny Gonzalez resigned this last December, leaving the board with a 2-2 split, the self-styled conservatives Komrosky and Jen Wiersma on one side and Trustees Allison Barclay and Steve Schwartz on the other. (Barclay and Schwartz have differing views on issues, but they’ve been united in opposing most of the measures that Komrosky, Wiersma, and Gonzalez passed—or refused to pass—in 2023.)
The current 2-2 board will try to appoint a replacement for Gonzalez, but agreement will be difficult. If they cannot agree, Gonzalez’s seat will remain vacant until a replacement is elected this November. If voters recall Komrosky, the board will end up with only three members until November: Barclay, Schwartz, and Wiersma.
Three constitutes a quorum, so those three can continue to do the business of the district.
And then comes November…
What all this means is that we will have at least three and likely four TVUSD School Board seats up for election in November 2024, because both Barclay’s and Schwartz’s terms expire then.
Wow.
That’s a lot of opportunity for all of us in Temecula. We have an important choice: we can either work hard to elect trustees who will govern well—or we’ll get stuck with another board from the 412 Church’s IE Family PAC that prioritizes their “Christian and Conservative values” above fiscal responsibility and educating our Temecula students. The conservatives and Christians at TVUSD Boardwatch do not view the values IE Family PAC candidates have demonstrated as either conservative or Christian, nor do many in our community.
Please help us bring good governance to the TVUSD. Many volunteers will be needed to raise awareness of the damage caused by Komrosky, Wiersma, and Gonzalez in 2023. Many volunteers will be needed to re-elect Barclay and Schwartz, and to support good candidates for the open seats who will focus on local educational issues and spend our taxpayer money wisely. You are needed!
You can find more information at 1TVPAC, which is spearheading the recall and will promote good candidates for November. RecallKomrosky.org will show you how to support the recall. And we here at TVUSD Boardwatch will continue to report and comment on developments.
We don’t ask for much, but today we ask each of you to share TVUSD Boardwatch with three of your friends or neighbors. (More are ok, too!) The more people who are aware of what’s going on and understand who they’re voting for, the better our community will be.
Thanks for reading. Now, which three people will you share Boardwatch with?