City Rep. Steve Ortega Recall Petition Paperwork Filed

Petitioners filed the necessary paperwork for the recall process against District 7 representative Steve Ortega on Wednesday afternoon.

ABC-7 caught up with Ortega, who said he was not surprised by the filing. He and District 2 representative Susie Byrd, as well as Mayor John Cook, have been at the center of a recall effort since they voted to overturn a controversial ordinance that would have stripped away the health benefits for dozens of people affiliated with the city of El Paso.

“I certainly don’t regret any actions I’ve taken in the city council,” said Ortega. “I stand by my decision to restore the benefits.”

Municipal clerk Richarda Duffy Momsen explained she has 10 days to verify that each of the signatures submitted by the petitioners is legitimate. She must also check that all the forms are filled out in accordance to the recall ordinance and Texas election law.

Recently, the petitioners’ signature-gathering process has been called into question. Ortega said he would wait until all the signatures were verified. “Then we’ll go from there,” he said.

If everything checks out and the process moves forward, the recall would be determined by voters at the next election.

Petitioners have until Monday to file the paperwork attached to the recall efforts against Cook and Byrd. Municipal clerk Richarda Momsen told ABC-7 petitioners have indicated they will have the forms in to her office at roughly 1:30 p.m. Thursday.