Zoning issues, alley trash, and Dallas City Hall have sparked a recall push for council members Chad West and Gay Donnell Willis.
But that ship has sailed. The deadline to put a recall election on this year's ballot has passed.
Political experts say recall efforts are usually an uphill battle.
"They're not common," said Cal Jillson, a political science professor at Southern Methodist University. "Because the number of signatures is quite high, people generally look at that possibility and blink."
West declined to comment. KERA reached out to Willis for comment and will update this story with any response.
Any city council member can be recalled, but the process starts with a petition. Notice of a petition has to be given to the city secretary in writing by five registered voters of the council member's district.
Once the petition has the total required signatures, it has to be filed within 60 days after the city secretary receives notice.
"The requirement is fairly steep," Jillson said. "You've got to get 15% of registered voters, of eligible voters, in a council district to sign a petition, and that's quite a bit because turnout in council elections is usually not even 15%."
He added that it's a "pretty tall order" to do within 60 days.
The city secretary then examines the petition and determines if an election can be called within 30 days.
An election for this calendar year would have to be called by Aug. 17, giving less than 30 days to give notice, collect necessary signatures, and submit to the city secretary for a determination.
For District 1, that would mean 6,934 signatures — in 2025, there were 4,039 total votes cast in the district, said David de la Fuente who is a politics and research expert.
"Neither the West nor Willis recalls were even organized enough to go and send five people to City Hall to actually even file a notice," de la Fuente said.
De la Fuente previously ran two of West's reelection campaigns, one in 2023 and the other in 2025. He no longer works for West in any capacity, but is a District 1 resident.
He said the recall effort for West started around April.
"So you're essentially saying that from April 2026 to July 2026, they could not even get organized enough to send five people to City Hall and then even attempt to collect a single signature," de la Fuente said.
The recall effort for West started shortly after City Council approved a controversial rezoning of 3.5 acres of undeveloped land by Coombs Creek into multifamily zoning, despite community pushback. The group's Facebook page was created less than a week after that vote.
The Recall Gay Donnell Willis website lists alley trash, City Hall, and zoning at Preston Road and Royal Lane as reasons for a recall.
The True Grit Texas PAC is behind the signs and website to recall West and Willis. True Grit Texas is a Dallas-based political action committee that supports conservative candidates, according to campaign finance records.
The group prioritizes keeping alley trash service and Dallas police funding. True Grit has also done recall work to recall Fort Worth City Council Member Elizabeth Beck.
Got a tip? Email Megan Cardona at mcardona@kera.org.
KERA News is made possible through the generosity of our members. If you find this reporting valuable, consider making a tax-deductible gift today. Thank you!
