LA Councilman Krekorian safe from recall effort as organizers miss deadline

Los Angeles City Councilman Paul Krekorian has survived an effort to recall him from office.

Late Tuesday, the City Clerk's office confirmed that a group trying to oust Krekorian, who represents parts of the San Fernando Valley, did not file the necessary signatures to move forward.

“[T]he people of my district have spoken clearly once again by rejecting this petition effort. I’m glad the issue has now been put to rest, and I’m grateful that the vast majority of the people support my work," Krekorian said in a written statement. 

The group sponsoring the petition did not immediately respond to KPCC's requests for comment.

Krekorian represents District 2, which includes Studio City, North Hollywood, Sun Valley, Valley Village and Van Nuys. He has served on the City Council since 2010. 

Krekorian's critics have complained about what they consider to be his slow response to constituents and pro-development positions. Some have called Krekorian "the invisible councilman."

The group organizing the recall effort wrote on its website that constituents sent Krekorian's office 42 emails in a seven-day period and none of them received a response. The group has criticized Krekorian for not supporting neighborhood preservation, including his lack of action to prevent the razing of Marilyn Monroe's home in Valley Village. 

Krekorian claimed strong support from his constituents, citing his reelection by over 75 percent of the vote in 2015. He is known for a number of accomplishments, including passage last year of an ordinance he authored that requires safer gun storage.

The recall petition required signatures from 15 percent of registered voters in Krekorian's council district, or about 18,500 signatures. 

The City Clerk's office approved signature gathering for the recall petition in late March. 

"We're always getting people who want to recall someone. This is the only group who has officially filed," said Horacio Arroyo, project coordinator at the City Clerk's office. Arroyo added that the group would have to re-start the process now if they want to try again. The current effort is over since the deadline was missed. 

Had the petition succeeded, Arroyo estimated the cost of a special election would have cost a little more than $1 million.