Abby Hoover
Managing Editor

A group of Kansas Citians has launched a recall effort against Fourth District Councilman Eric Bunch.

Take KC Back is a self-proclaimed nonpartisan group of citizens who support the Kansas City Police Department (KCPD). They are in favor of recalling city council members who have “shown an inability to support KCPD, build bridges in the community and transparency in council business.”

The group filed an affidavit with the city clerk to recall Bunch on July 22.
In Kansas City, the number of signatures necessary is 20% of the number of people who cast a vote for candidates for the office of mayor at the last preceding regular municipal election.

The Kansas City Board of Election Commissioners (KCEB) is the election authority only in the portions of Kansas City within Jackson County. In the 2019 mayoral election, KCEB recorded 30,125 votes for Quinton Lucas and 17,677 for Jolie Justus for a total of 47,802 votes.

Because Bunch is in-district, only 20 percent of fourth district votes are required. The only council district where Justus beat Lucas, there were 12,137 total votes. The recall effort would need at least 2,427 signatures – and only residents of his district can sign the petition.

“We’re having success with all voters, of all backgrounds, right now,” said fourth district resident Nathan Willett and Take KC Back supporter.

Willett said the canvassers have been registering people to vote on the spot, and have translated materials into Spanish. He estimates they have 43% of the signatures they need, and they’ve been verifying them internally.

“We’re sticking to just strictly police and process,” Willett said. “Had lots of great conversations with people, even some people who didn’t sign the petition who are really just encouraged that there’s people going around and getting involved with civic discourse and trying to have more transparency, because what happened on May 20 was not transparent at all.”

Council District 4 includes, but is not limited to, North Blue Ridge, Sheffield, Indian Mound, Scarritt Renaissance, the East Bottoms, Columbus Park, River Market, the West Bottoms, Downtown, Crossroads, Midtown, Westport, Hyde Park, and the Plaza.

As of last week, the group said they have collected 175 signatures from Northeast residents, and attended a community meeting at Winner Park in the North Blue Ridge neighborhood. They’ve also recruited volunteers who are fluent in Spanish to translate materials to reach a broader demographic.

Take KC Back’s website lists ways they believe Bunch has gone against the will of his constituents, making a case for his recall. On January 20, Bunch called for KCPD Chief of Police Rick Smith to resign or be fired, which Take KC Back said is “bowing to the radical protesters” who have called for defunding the police.

Along with eight other city council members and Mayor Quinton Lucas, Bunch voted in favor of two ordinances on May 20 in an effort to gain some control over the department’s budget – a move that Take KC Back said defunds KCPD – the same day they were introduced, leaving no room for public comment.

The four council members who voted against the ordinances represent Kansas City north of the Missouri River, and were notably left out of the discussion prior to introduction: First District Councilmembers Heather Hall and Kevin O’Neill, and Second District Councilmembers Theresa Loar and Dan Fowler.

“Bunch voted to defund KCPD by over $42 million without constituent input and without guarantee that the money would go back to the police department,” the group’s website reads.

Just days before, the Missouri General Assembly passed a measure lifting the long-standing residency requirement for police. With a department run by a state-appointed Board of Police Commissioners – who approved the change last month – the City’s elected officials, aside from the mayor who sits on the board, were left out of the decision.

The group noted that those signing the petition are not necessarily against local control or the budget changes, but were disappointed in the lack of process and opportunity to give input.

The recall petition must be filed within 30 days – including weekends and holidays – of the date the affidavit was filed. The recall petition can be filed either with the KCEB or with the city clerk. The 30th day is Sunday, August 21.

If the group successfully files the recall petition, it will then be examined by the election authority to check the names for legitimacy of voter registration and residency in the proper district. If there is a sufficient number of signatures and if the petition is otherwise in proper form, the city clerk or election authority will issue a Certificate of Sufficiency.

If there is an insufficient number of signatures, the city clerk or election authority will issue a Certificate of Insufficiency. The Committee of Petitioners will have 10 days after the making of the Certificate of Insufficiency to file a supplementary recall petition, which may include additional signatures, and will again be examined by the KCEB. If it is insufficient, they will issue a Certificate of Insufficiency, and no further action will be taken on the recall petition.

If the petition is certified, the clerk or election authority will submit it to the City Council and also notify the person whose removal is sought. The person whose removal is sought has five days after the petition is submitted to the City Council to resign.

If the individual does not resign, it goes up for a vote. KCEB Republican Director Shawn Kieffer said recall elections are “very, very infrequent.”

“It takes a lot of signatures to get a recall, and generally there’s good effort in getting people out and collecting signatures, but rarely do they get enough to actually make it on the ballot,” Kieffer said.

He said the last time he could remember a recall vote in Kansas City, nearly 30 years ago, there were two questions. One recalling the elected official, and a second asking who should replace them.

“Every time we’re going to have one, or every time we think we’re going to have one, we go back to the City Charter and read, and make sure that we’re doing it right and double check our numbers,” Kieffer said. “It’s a very interesting process to go through.”

Bunch, who has been largely silent about the recall effort, took to Twitter on Tuesday night to address it.

“I’ve struggled to devise the appropriate response,” Bunch Tweeted. “Do I bring unwarranted attention to the frivolous attempt to halt the progress we’ve made? Or do I ignore it knowing they are likely to fail?”

He initially decided on a “milquetoast” response, highlighting his successes over the past two years, naming zero fare transit, a new housing department, creative solutions for restaurants to survive the pandemic, and prevailing wage for incentivized developments. However, he said the irony is that this list of accomplishments is incomplete without the very thing that pushed these folks to attempt a recall.

Bunch said he stand firmly behind his vote.

“Thanks to this vote, you and your local officials can ensure that KCPD uses your tax dollars as intended – at least for a portion of their budget,” Bunch Tweeted. “Gone are the days of writing a blank check to the Governor-appointed police commission.”

He added that while some may see the May 20 ordinance as a half measure toward local control of the police department, this effort was the first substantive step in recent history toward necessary transformational change of KCPD’s governance structure.

Fourth District council members Bunch and Katheryn Shields will hold a listening session for their constituents on Tuesday, Aug. 17 at 6 p.m. via Zoom.

This article has been updated from the printed version to reflect the statement from Bunch, which was not provided by the time of publication.