Peotter recall group concedes after signatures are reviewed

Organizers of an effort to recall Newport Beach City Councilman Scott Peotter said Monday that they will not further challenge the examination of their petition that narrowly failed to force a special election.

After the Orange County registrar of voters office determined that the Committee to Recall Scott Peotter was 106 signatures short, the group said last month that it would seek a reverification.

But after getting a quick look at the rejected signatures, recall organizer Susan Skinner said Monday that the county had appropriately disqualified some of the endorsements.

“Regardless of the registrar’s count, the signatures that we submitted are a remarkable repudiation of Peotter and his poor record on behalf of Newport Beach residents,” she said in an email. “We look forward to redoubling our efforts to defeat Peotter in November.”

Peotter, who represents District 6, which includes the Corona del Mar area, is up for reelection this year.

The committee submitted 10,696 signatures Oct. 27. The county threw out 2,357 as invalid, including 205 from signers who requested to have their endorsements revoked.

That left the group with 8,339 valid signatures, 106 shy of the needed 8,445, representing 15% of the city’s registered voters.

Recall supporters cited several issues of policy and civility in seeking Peotter’s recall. In addition to his support of the now-scuttled Museum House high-rise condominium project, the group says he insulted residents and colleagues and made poor financial decisions for the city, such as his August vote — along with four other council members — to decline the city’s share of state gas tax revenue in protest of the tax.

Peotter has said the recall targeted him for being “politically incorrect.”

The county billed the city of Newport Beach $41,871 for the signature verification, according to City Clerk Leilani Brown.

hillary.davis@latimes.com

Twitter: @Daily_PilotHD