Councilman White escapes recall

Kevin Valine Modesto Bee:
 RIVERBANK -- City Councilman Jesse James White has dodged another political bullet. For the second year in a row, a group trying to oust him from office failed to gather enough signatures on recall petitions. Riverbank Citizens for Fair Change needed to turn in at least 2,185 signatures to City Hall on Tuesday night. The group turned in 2,156, and the city disqualified 73 of them, leaving the group with 2,083 signatures.

One of the recall leaders said that while she is disappointed, she is encouraged that nearly 25 percent of the city's voters signed the petitions.  "That's a huge number," said Dotty Ny-gard, who also is one of the nine candidates running for two council seats Nov. 2. "The city spoke loud and clear. They are saying the same message: Jesse doesn't represent them anymore. They want him to step down." White said that's not what he is hearing."They tried to recall me twice and failed twice. That's the bigger message," he said at a restaurant as he celebrated with his family Wednesday afternoon. White has at times exasperated and frustrated other council members and city staff, such as when he blocked the city from applying for grant money at a recent council meeting or opposed a sewer rate increase the city says is needed for repairs and upgrades. He said he is the only council member willing to question city staff and who is a watchdog of city spending. White, 21, has been a lightning rod on the council since his November 2008 election. (more)