Group Circulating Petition To Recall Commissioner Jones

BURLEIGH COUNTY, N.D. -Some Burleigh County residents are petitioning to recall Commissioner Kathleen Jones after the commission took up a controversial issue in December according to KFYR-TV.

In the last couple months, Burleigh County Commissioners voted to continue allowing refugees, and rejected a move to run a public straw poll about the issue.  This caused very strong opinions on both sides of the fence.

"Certainly the recourse if people are unhappy with our decision is to recall us, and they certainly have the right to do that," said Commissioner Mark Armstrong.

A group in Bismarck is circulating a petition to recall, not Commissioner Armstrong, but Commissioner Kathleen Jones.

"Everybody has the right under our system, our legal system, and under our freedom system to do as they please. I personally think that they overreacted," said Jones.

The petition needs almost 12,000 signatures to recall the commissioner.

"We've all come here repeatedly to these meetings, and they keep covering up the fact that the general population wants this done different. Three of them have an opinion and that's the way it's going to be. It's time to change it," said Michael Frank, petition chairman.

Jones says she tallied the community response that she received on the issue and counted two thirds in favor of refugees.