Lincoln Chamber Opposes Recall of City Leaders

(KFOR NEWS November 18, 2020) The Lincoln Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors opposes an effort to recall local elected officials.

“The Lincoln Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors very much appreciate the continued leadership of Mayor Gaylor Baird during this pandemic. We also thank our other elected leaders on the city council, the county board and school board for their efforts working collaboratively with Director Lopez and her team at the health department to protect the public’s health. We support their efforts to keep us safe and we are confident that working as a team, we will get through this difficult time together.

Our Mask-Up Lincoln campaign is just as important today as when we started it in May, in partnership with the Mayor’s office. We are proud of the many businesses that have taken the necessary steps to make their businesses safe and helped reduce the spread of the virus. If we want to keep our businesses open and our citizens working, we urge citizens and businesses to remain vigilant in wearing masks and following other protective health protocols. The Lincoln Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors opposes efforts to recall Mayor Gaylor Baird and Councilmembers Raybould, Ward, Meginnis and Bowers. We believe recalling elected officials should only be reserved for egregious violations of the public trust. This attempt to recall the Mayor and four district councilmembers is not only unwarranted, it would be detrimental to our community’s public health while also hindering economic recovery efforts.”

The recall effort organized by LNK Recall is in response to the mayor implementing a citywide mask mandate and the appointment of Pat Lopez as Health Director on August 17th. The City Council suspended charter rules which give citizens an opportunity to weigh in on the appointment, allowing for an immediate vote to appoint Lopez.