County elections chief rejects paperwork to begin recall of Sequoia trustee Rich Ginn

A recall effort targeting Sequoia Union High School trustee Rich Ginn was rejected by the San Mateo County Election Office after a paperwork mix-up. Ginn received a notice of intention served by parents upset about the board’s closure of the small STEM-focused magnet school TIDE Academy. The elections office said the paperwork filed did not match what it received, because a draft intent was filed with the county instead of the actual statement served to Ginn. Recall organizers said they were disappointed by the lack of communication and plan to restart the recall process for Ginn, Mary Beth Thompson, and Maria Cruz. Petitions for Thompson and Cruz previously failed to meet the 30-signature requirement due to signers not being from the trustees’ districts and incomplete residence address information. The group is not seeking recalls for Sathvik Nori and Amy Koo because their terms end this year.

"The recall effort against Sequoia Union High School Trustee Rich Ginn has been rejected by the San Mateo County Election Office after a paperwork mix-up. Ginn was served with a "notice of intention" by parents upset by the board's closure of the small STEM-fo-cused magnet school TIDE Academy. The parents believe he didn't prioritize the community with his vote to close the small magnet school, but the paperwork didn't match what the elections office received, Elections Officer Mark Church said."

"A draft of the intent to recall Ginn was filed with the county instead of the actual statement that was served to Ginn, parent Johanna Mahal said in a statement. "We are disappointed that the county did not communicate with us by their deadline. Our sense is that the county rejected the filing a week later because of pressure from the incumbent who would face the recall," Mahal, leader of the recall efforts, said in a statement."

"Plans to restart Parents will be restarting the recall process for board members Ginn, Mary Beth Thompson and Maria Cruz. The petitions against Thompson and Cruz previously did not meet the 30-signa-ture requirement, according to Church. Issues included signers not being from trustees' districts and incomplete residence address information, like missing ZIP codes, Church said. Only registered voters who live in the area represented by the trustee can sign the petition."

"The group is not seeking the recall of board members Sathvik Nori and Amy Koo because their terms end this year. "I've never organized a recall before, and all of the people working on this are volunteers doing it in their spare time because they believe we need leadership change in the Sequoia Union High School District," Mahal said. Parents feel that Ginn, Thompson and Cruz didn't make the best decisions in closing the school with fewer than 200 students, even though the board voted in favor of the closure due"

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