San Mateo Mayor Amourance Lee Could Be Recalled After Dirty Mayoral Appointment in December

SAN MATEO, California (KGO) — You may not know it as you walk the picturesque streets of San Mateo, but in the heart of this peninsular city, a political battle is brewing.

Over the past few weeks, groups of people have been collecting signatures in an effort to get San Mateo Mayor Amorence Lee to be recalled on the November ballot.

“I just think that her motives and a lot of her behavior did not demonstrate honesty, remorse, or a willingness to work with all of us,” said Michael Weinhauer.

Weinhauer is a local resident and one of those pushing for the recall.

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He says five former mayors of San Mateo support Lee’s recall.

Weinhower points to Lee’s behavior as mayor, as well as her city development plans, as one of the campaign’s driving forces.

“When you become a leader, you have to transform from a person who rides for a reason to a person who represents your entire constituency,” Weinhauer said.

But this is not the first time Lee’s political career has come under fire. When she was named mayor a few months ago, the process took several days.

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This delay was caused by two members of the San Mateo city council trying to block Lee’s appointment as mayor back in December.

This left the city without a mayor for a week, and culminated in Lee stating that she was approached by people who offered to trade her vote for an empty city council seat for votes for her to become mayor.

Allegations currently being investigated by the San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office.

As for the recall, Lee says she’s focused on her current work and doesn’t let critics baffle her.

“I think the majority of San Mateo residents and local businesses want us to focus on addressing unmet needs,” Lee said.

Lee is backed by several prominent elected officials, including local US Representative Kevin Mullin, State Treasurer Fiona Ma, and others.

She believes the city should focus on issues that affect all residents and says a possible recall could cost up to $1 million.

“I don’t think we can squander our limited resources. We need to focus on pandemic recovery, stormwater infrastructure, emergency preparedness,” Li said.

To pass the autumn voting, the organizers need to collect 8,000 signatures by May.

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