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HomeElections CodeDiv. 11Ch. 4Art. 1§ 11302 Recall Election After Vacancy

§ 11302 Recall Election After Vacancy

Elections Code·California
AI Summary·Official Text·Key Terms·Related Statutes·References
AI SummaryVerified

§ 11302 Recall Election After Vacancy

This law says that if an elected official's job becomes empty after a recall petition is filed, the recall vote still goes ahead unless there weren’t enough signatures on the petition when the job became empty.

Key Takeaways

  • •Recall elections keep going even if the official leaves office, unless there weren’t enough signatures on the petition at that time.
  • •Election officials must check the petition signatures right when the vacancy happens.
  • •If there aren’t enough signatures, the recall election is stopped and the vacancy is filled by the usual rules.
  • •The person who was being recalled can’t be appointed back to that seat or any other seat on the same board for the rest of the term.

Example

A city council member is being recalled, but they quit before the recall vote. The elections office checks how many signatures were on the recall petition at the moment they quit.

If enough signatures were on the petition when the council member quit, the recall election still happens. If not enough signatures were there, the recall election is cancelled and the empty seat is filled the normal way, and the former council member can’t be appointed back to that seat or any other seat on the same board for the rest of the term.

AI-generated — May contain errors. Not legal advice. Always verify source.

Official Source
View on CA.gov

§ 11302 Recall Election After Vacancy

(a) Except as described in paragraph (3) of subdivision (b), if a vacancy occurs in an office after a recall petition is filed against the vacating officer, the recall election shall nevertheless proceed. (b) (1) Upon the occurrence of the vacancy, the elections official for each county in which a section of the recall petition has been filed shall immediately verify the signatures on the petition submitted to the elections official as of the date of the vacancy. (2) If the elections official verifies that a sufficient number of signatures were filed as of the date of the vacancy, the recall election shall proceed. (3) If the elections official verifies that an insufficient number of signatures, or no signatures, were filed as of the date of the vacancy, the recall election shall not proceed and a vacancy in the office that is the subject of the recall election shall be filled as otherwise provided by law. (4) A person who was subject to a recall petition may not be appointed to fill the vacancy in the office that he or she vacated and that person may not be appointed to fill any other vacancy in office on the same governing board for the duration of the term of office of the seat that he or she vacated. (Amended by Stats. 2014, Ch. 591, Sec. 3. (AB 1311) Effective January 1, 2015.)

Last verified: January 10, 2026

Key Terms

recall petitionvacancyrecall electionelections officialsufficient number of signaturesinsufficient number of signaturesgoverning board

Related Statutes

  • § 11303 Recall Petition Signature Withdrawal
  • § 7216 Committee Vacancy Appointment Notices
  • § 7414 Committee Vacancy Appointment Notices
  • § 7661 Committee Vacancy Appointment Notices
  • § 11301 Petition Signature Examination Rules

References

  • Official text at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
  • California Legislature. Elections Code. Section 11302.
View Official Source