Fargo School Board recall effort fails due to insufficient number of signatures
FARGO (KVRR) – Fargo Public School district officials say there aren’t enough valid signatures to hold a special election to recall four members of the Fargo School Board.
A spokesperson for the recall effort tells KVRR that they are looking at their options and will not be addressing the media at this time.
The school district says business Manager Jackie Gapp completed the validation process and determined the petitions do not include 4,144 valid signatures for each Board member necessary for a recall election.
Board members Nikkie Gullickson, Seth Holden, Jim Johnson and Tracie Newman were being targeted. Some parents say the board members haven’t been transparent about their decisions regarding the pandemic.
“The decisions that were made by administration and upheld by the school board, the authority that was given from the school board to the administration, the lack of accountability and just overall these massive decisions that were made on behalf of our kids and there was no input from parents and there was no input from teachers,” petition organizer Allie Ollenburger said.
Some of the signatures considered invalid came from Fargo residents who actually reside in the West Fargo Public School District. Other invalid signatures were from people who live in other cities, including Horace, Harwood, Bismarck, and Moorhead.
Below is the total number of signatures submitted by the recall committee per Board member, along with the number of validated signatures for each. Please see the attached summaries for additional information for each petition by Board member.
Below is the total number of signatures submitted by the recall committee per Board member, along with the number of validated signatures for each. Source: Fargo Public Schools
BOARD MEMBER SIGNATURES SUBMITTED SIGNATURES VALIDATED
Nikkie Gullickson 4,457 3,081
Seth Holden 4,451 2,996
Jim Johnson 4,514 2,879
Tracie Newman 4,472 2,910
