2 Council Members Targeted for Recall

Two Gardena city council members up for reelection in March are the target of a recall effort being organized by the local Committee for Political Reform, which is angry that the city will have a $3.34-million shortfall this year.

In its attempt to recall council members Paul Tsukahara and James Cragin, the committee is preparing petitions that must be submitted to the city clerk by Monday. ( The city clerk has 10 days to reply, after which the recall committee has 120 days to gather 4,500 signatures to put the issue on the ballot.

The committee has targeted just two of the five council members because it would be harder to gather signatures to recall all five, according to a statement from the group.

Tsukahara, a councilman since 1980, said the committee is made up of several relatives of people who ran unsuccessfully for the council. “These are desperate people resorting to desperate means,” he said.