EAST CLEVELAND, Ohio — East Cleveland registered voters will once again return to the polls on Dec. 5 to decide whether Mayor Brandon King will be recalled and removed from office.
It marks the second recall vote on Mayor King in just the past year, with King narrowly averting being voted out of office by just 19 votes back in Nov. 2022.
We don’t just report the initial story—we follow through to its conclusion. Read and watch our previous reporting on this story below and see more stories that we've followed through on here.
East Cleveland voter Shirley Hatcher supports keeping Mayor King in office for the remaining two years of his current term and told News 5 she's hoping the the recall vote will unify a city that's been dealing with political division for years. Hatcher believes removing Mayor King will create even more political turmoil.
“I want closure and I want unity and that’s what we’re here for," Hatcher said. “We want this change to be for the better, for everyone, and the only way that’s going to happen is that we stick with Brandon King.”
But 50-year East Cleveland registered voter Delores Harris believes Mayor King needs to be replaced and told News 5 that Mayor King and his administration haven't done enough to remove the crime problem that continues to plague her neighborhood.
“We’ve had a lot of drugs and prostitution on my street, and I tried to find out why the police didn’t come when I called and how they had no record of me calling," Harris said. "On Dec. 5, I will be voting for the recall, East Cleveland can only heal and move forward with him gone.”
East Cleveland Councilwoman Patricia Blochowiak is also asking voters to recall Mayor King and told News 5 she believes Mayor King has mishandled city funds and hasn't led enough police department reform.
“The only way that we’re going to get rid of a mayor who has been spending money that hasn’t been appropriated for years is if the people understand how critical it is to get out to vote," Blochowiak said. “He hasn’t done a fiscal recovery plan, he’s seven months behind in getting our finance reports out, and there’s still concerns about training for the police officers that hasn’t been done.”
East Cleveland Councilman-elect Timothy Austin had a different view and told News 5 that Mayor King should be kept in office to promote governmental stability and leadership for a series of ongoing development projects.
“It's my opinion that the Mayor is not a perfect man, but he’s willing to sacrifice a little of himself on a regular basis to make sure the city is going to be okay," Austin said. “The reason I would like to keep Mayor King in office is because we have a partnership with the land bank, partnership with the State of Ohio to allow us to get more resources; he knows how to get us with NOACA to help us with our roads and infrastructure support that we need.”
News 5 reached out to Mayor King for this story, but we're still waiting for a response.
The Cuyahoga County Board of Elections encouraged voters to take advantage of the convenience of Voting by Mail and said Vote-by-Mail Ballot Applications are available online or by calling 216-443-VOTE (8683) and at all public libraries.
Vote-by-Mail Ballot Applications must be received by the Board of Elections on or before 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday, November 28, 2023, to get the ballot request processed. Early In-Person Voting is located at the Board of Elections, 2925 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio 44115, with the following voting schedule:
Weekdays Nov. 13 – Nov. 17, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Weekdays Nov. 20 – Nov. 22, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Thursday, Nov. 23, Closed on Thanksgiving
Friday, Nov. 24, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Monday, Nov. 27, 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday, November 28, 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Weekdays Nov. 29 – Dec. 1, 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, Dec. 2, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Sunday, Dec. 3, 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
News 5 is committed in following through on this developing story.
