Whitehall voters will head to the polls Tuesday to decide whether Mayor Michael Bivens and two city council members should keep their positions.
What is turning out to be a contentious special election may be decided by a low number of Whitehall's more than 11,000 registered voters. The Columbus suburb's government has been roiled by fights with the Fraternal Order of Police, the arrest of a city council member on child sex abuse charges and now this recall effort.
Petition organizers successfully forced the special election to oust Bivens alongside City Council Members Lori Elmore and Amy Harcar. Bivens defended himself and the council members, saying he sees no valid reason for this recall.
"I have no idea why they are initiating the recall," Bivens said. "Their reasons largely are not based in fact, based in fear and misinformation."
Neither of the main organizers, Patricia Balser or Holly Stein, responded to repeated requests for comment. Stein and Balser were slated to give a special presentation to city council last week, but Ohio Auditor Keith Faber cautioned the city against allowing it.
Faber also had to step in after a complaint against Elmore was submitted because she campaigned from the dais at a city council meeting June 1.
"I stand with yes, yes, that's where I stand with," Elmore said. "And the June 23rd vote, please vote yes."
When voters cast their ballots, they will see three questions asking whether the three should keep their jobs. A "Yes" vote means Bivens, Elmore and Harcar keep their seats. A "No" vote means each loses their position. That would trigger the city's charter, which governs how the city should pick each elected official's successor.
At past council meetings, Balser and Stein explained their motivations are due to a number of disagreements, including fiscal responsibility, professionalism by elected officials, governing actions and opposition to a housing development. They have also criticized the creation of Whitehall's Department on Neighborhoods, saying it is a waste of taxpayer dollars.
Bivens said the city has seen record progress and touted putting the city in a better financial situation. He said the new department helps address systemic issues in the city, such as poverty.
"These are monumental things that have been done in two and a half years," Bivens said, "And that's what we stand on."
Underlying the election is the FOP's involvement. The police union has filed complaints over Police Chief Mike Crispen's firing of union grievance officers and restricted the union's email communications with city employees.
For this election, the FOP contributed more than $2,000 to the recall campaign. Two union officers are also using AI images of the three elected officials on social media to campaign against Bivens, Harcar and Elmore.
FOP President Brian Steel said Crispen is corrupt and the mayor, as Crispen's boss, and the two council members have failed to provide oversight to hold him accountable.
"Even though I would like to see this police chief go because I think he is the most corrupt and failed police chief we've had in my time," Steel said, "More importantly, I would to see what we originally wanted, an independent investigation into the allegations of corruption, hostile toxic work environment."
Crispen also arrested Council member Gerald Dixon last year before he was sworn in to a new term, alleging Dixon sexually abused children. The charges were later dropped and Crispen has not refiled them, despite claiming police had significant evidence. Dixon supported calls by the FOP to investigate Crispen and his department.
Columbus NAACP President Sean Walton said the FOP is the driving force behind this recall effort because they disagree with how Crispen runs the police department.
"That's something that's good for the people and not good for police officers," Walton said.
Walton has his own ongoing fight with Steel. It traces to Walton, as a lawyer, representing families in civil suits against police officers charged with murdering Black people in the Columbus area.
Walton said the allegations against Bivens and the two council members are unfounded and there is an undertone that two of the only Black members of city government are unqualified.
Walton agrees that there are strong racial dynamics. Several committee members of the Franklin County Democratic Party called the recall racist when the party voted to support Bivens, Harcar and Elmore in this special election in April.
Bivens is the city's first Black mayor and Elmore is the city's first Black city council member.
"To have these baseless allegations, it is very much reminiscent of the ways that they try to discredit Black people in America in ways, saying that we're unprofessional or even criminal," Walton said.
Steel said what he calls false allegations of racism distract from the real issues.
"They make it clear that racism is in play there," Steel said. "There's been multiple, multiple statements on this, that this is extremism, outside influence, partisan elections."
As of Friday, less than 300 voters had cast ballots early in-person or by mail.
Bivens said he is confident he will survive this special election. He did not want to speculate on what the consequences could be if he and the two council members are removed.
"If I'm standing on my record, if I am going to speculate on what would happen without me or council member Elmore or Harcar there," Bivens said, "then I have to also presume that that would leave a gap in leadership."
There is no early voting in the special election Monday, but voters can cast their votes Tuesday from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
