Recall drive picks up local backers

CLARK FORK — A campaign to recall State Superintendent Tom Luna is picking up speed across Idaho, and Bonner County is no exception.

The initiative, started a week ago by Nancy Berto of Boise in response to Luna’s controversial education reform plan, has quickly picked up speed. Berto has established a website at www.recalltomluna.org and the committee’s Facebook page has acquired 3,358 “likes” as of Monday. The organization has also accrued several volunteers, including Beverly Tuel of Clark Fork.

“I think we should vote on Luna again, this time knowing what the issues are,” she said. “We didn’t know enough the first time around.”

Tuel and her fellow committee members are facing a long process to achieve their goal. They will have to collect signatures from 20 percent of  Idaho’s registered voters to trigger a recall election.

Committee officials have set a goal of 200,000 signatures and are planning a petition drive on April 16. Berto said that with hundreds of volunteers already signed up for the drive, the recall is a viable outcome.

“The Committee to Recall Tom Luna has set its goals to remove a man from office who is trying to dismantle our public education system for the interest of large lobbies and corporations who have funded him in his bids for office,” she said via press release.

Group officials are quick to point out that the committee is a nonpartisan entity operating outside of a political perspective.

“People are coming from every political party affiliation to back this nonpartisan organization,” Berto said. “We are all working together to bring accountability to Idaho politics, to let our elected officials know that the days of not listening to their constituents is over.”

“I’m not a Republican or a Democrat. I’m an independent, so this isn’t a political issue for me,” Tuel said. “This is about the kids.”

Luna’s office responded by stating the state superintendent was candid about his plans during the election.

“Over the past four years and during the campaign, Superintendent Luna talked about many components of what is now called the Students Come First plan,” Luna spokeswoman Melissa McGrath said. “Superintendent Luna was clear that if the economy did not turn around, the state could not just continue cutting more from public schools but spend what it currently had differently.”

McGrath also pointed out that Luna decisively won his election at 60 percent of the vote with a 21 percent margin.

However, committee members feel that Luna didn’t make the details of his reform plan clear to the public.

“It’s important that when people vote, they know exactly what they’re voting for,” Tuel said.