Brief by Central Staff
Local Politics – July 1999 – Colorado Central Magazine
Bjüni recalls 4 trustees
Buena Vista’s title as “Recall Capital of Colorado” should be secure for a while.
On June 8, voters replaced four of the town’s six trustees in a special recall election; the recall margins were on the order of 250 for ousting the incumbent to 220 to retain. About 37% of the electorate — 510 of 1,385 registered voters — went to the polls.
The recall was sparked earlier this year when the town manager fired the police chief, and the board upheld that decision.
Buena Vista Mayor Clint Driscoll said the outcome “was a surprise to me. I had hoped that the citizens were ready to settle into some stable, long-term government.”
Driscoll said that although the firing inspired the recalls, the election results “reflect dissatisfaction about many issues. A lot of people don’t like the way things are going.
“But you can’t turn the clock back with an election. No matter who’s on the board, we’re going to have to deal with growth and its effects.”
As for his own tenure in office, Driscoll said “I haven’t heard of any recall petitions with my name on them — but you never know.”