Calgary mayor recall petition: 72,271 signatures submitted to city

Exactly 60 days after he launched a campaign to recall Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek, Landon Johnston rolled a stack of six boxes in to the Elections Calgary office ahead of the deadline for the petition.

Exactly 60 days after he launched a campaign to recall Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek, Landon Johnston rolled a stack of six boxes in to the Elections Calgary office ahead of the deadline for the petition.

"The mayor should be afraid of the people. All elected officials should be afraid of us, because the power is with us," Johnston said Thursday afternoon, moments after the petition was submitted.

The unofficial total number of signatures handed in was 72,271, Johnston said.

In order for the petition to be deemed sufficient, it needed to exceed 514,284 signatures. The requirement is set out in provincial legislation and the number is based on 40 per cent of the city's 2019 population of 1,285,711.

"It has been a battle from all angles: Weather, legislation, people back stabbing people. It's been a whirlwind," Johnston added.

The petition is now in the city's hands for an official count. The city clerk will lead a team of up to 10 staffers to tally up the numbers over the next 45 days.