Use this search box to find articles that have run in our newspapers over the last several years.
Date: 11/9/2021
SOUTHWICK — Prompted mostly by the sudden dismissals of three commissioners on the Conservation Commission, Agricultural Commission and Community Preservation Committee, a newly formed group of political activists has begun a campaign to recall Russell Fox from his seat on the Select Board.
Citizens Reclaiming Southwick was founded last month by Jason Giguere, who said that it will operate separately from Save Southwick, a group that formed in the spring largely to oppose the controversial proposed Carvana automobile sales processing plant. There are some common members between the two, but Giguere said that their goals and efforts will be separate.
The group as of Nov. 5 consisted of about 26 members, though Giguere said that he expects the number to jump up now that its website is live.
The group submitted an initial petition last week of 115 qualified signatures in favor of forcing a recall election against Fox. In addition to the sudden dismissals of the three commissioners, they accuse Fox of engaging in years of political retaliation, nepotism and numerous Open Meeting Law violations.
Fox said Nov. 7 that he still hadn’t been officially notified about the recall petition, hadn’t read any of the allegations from Citizens Reclaiming Southwick, and had no further comment on the matter. He said he would release a formal statement if and when he is officially notified about the petition.
After the group submitted the initial petition, Town Clerk Michelle Hill and town counsel began writing the legal language of the main recall petition, on which the group must receive 1,786 signatures by Nov. 29. That number represents 25 percent of the registered voters in Southwick.
Fox has been on the Select Board for 18 years. He, along with board members Joseph Deedy and Douglas Moglin, have run for their respective seats uncontested since at least 2013. Should the second petition gain enough qualified signatures, it would be the first time in years that Fox will face a challenger for his seat.
If Citizens Reclaiming Southwick gathers enough signatures — Giguere said he plans to get more than the required number, as invariably some will be rejected as illegible, duplicate or from people who are not active registered voters in Southwick — the group will put forward a candidate to oppose Fox in a special election.
Hill said she hasn’t set a date yet for the potential recall election, but it will take place sooner than the regular town elections in May, and would be conducted at the town’s expense. It may also be the first time Southwick has ever had a recall election. Both Hill and Giguere said that in their initial research on the topic, they can find no record of a recall election in Southwick’s 251-year history.
Fox’s current three-year term is set to expire in spring 2023. The Select Board member up for re-election in 2022 is Deedy, who was not present at the Sept. 27 meeting where the commission appointments were voted.