An effort to recall Grossmont Union High School District board member Scott Eckert failed Monday after it fell thousands of signatures short of requirements.
Despite dozens of canvassing events and impassioned volunteers, Eckert will not head back to the ballot until his term ends in 2028.
The grassroots effort needed signatures from 15% of registered voters in La Mesa to spur a special election. Volunteers said most voters had not heard of the GUHSD board activities prior to speaking with them.
It has been months since the news that the board laid off its librarians, assuming that news punched through to a general audience in the first place. The initial outrage has faded even if scrutiny of the scandal-prone board has not.
In the intervening time, multiple investigations from local news outlets unveiled cronyism, alleged discrimination against perceived enemies and possible pay-to-play dealings. Even the Fair Political Practices Commission opened an investigation into Eckert’s vote to renew the contract of a prominent campaign donor.
The argument against Eckert has not rested on one large event, but a steady trickle of small offenses. Those include potentially violating the Brown Act in a group chat that plotted board business, joining other board members to create a high-paid admin job for a political ally while the board laid off all librarians, and voting to renew a contract for campaign donor J.W. Howard.
The scandals could be easily waved away blips — or a sign of deeper corruption. Advocates argue the revelations indicate the board lacks transparency and accountability.
At the beginning of the recall effort, advocates promised Eckert was the first of the board members they planned to target, with the rest to follow.
That will change after this failure. The leader of the recall, Andy Trimlett, said the 200-volunteer strong recall team is ready to focus on the 2026 general election. They hope to flip the board as conservative bloc members Jim Kelly, Gary Woods and Robert Shield face reelection.
Indeed, voters could send Eckert home after all. Thousands signed a petition to oust him, and can now vote against him.
In 2024, his top opponent, Jay Steiger, suffered from a “ghost candidate,” who won close to 4,000 votes while claiming to be to Stieger’s left. The margin in the races was just 1,100 votes.
Political parties do not appear alongside candidate names in the non-partisan race. Yet of the four candidates on the ballot, a second Republican, Jim Stieringer, ran alongside Stieger with a remarkably — even confusingly — similar name.
Eckert may not see those electoral edges again in his next race — especially with the teachers union and the lone Democrat on the board ready to guard against them after 2024.
For now, Eckert’s seat is safe. If distrust still simmers over the next several years, however, e it could affect his chances at reelection.
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