A recall affidavit has been filed with the city of McKinney and official petition papers have been issued for circulation, city officials confirmed.
The campaign, called McKinney Recall, is collecting signatures to recall, or remove from office, the following public officials: Mayor Bill Cox and McKinney City Council members Justin Beller, Geré Feltus and Ernest Lynch.
What you need to know
Under terms of McKinney’s City Charter, the petition must be returned to the City Secretary’s office within 45 days of filing the affidavit. The petition must be signed by at least 5,805 qualified voters living within McKinney, which is 30% of the total number of votes cast in McKinney’s last regular municipal election.
McKinney’s last regular municipal election was held May 3, 2025, in which 19,350 votes were cast, according to Collin County election results. Once the petition is returned, the city secretary has 30 days to examine and verify that each signature is a qualified voter in McKinney.
If the petition meets requirements, the city secretary will notify the affected council members within five days or at the next council meeting, according to the city charter. If the notified council members do not resign within five days, council will order a citywide recall election.
More details
The petition will apply for all four members on the council, according to McKinney Recall’s website. The petition passes or fails “as a whole for all four names,” it states.
Five McKinney voters are required to file an affidavit for the recall process, according to the city charter. The affidavit states "a loss of public confidence in the ability of the officers named herein to faithfully represent the citizens of the City of McKinney," as grounds for recall.
McKinney Recall’s website states the affidavit was filed Aug. 11 and the petition is due Sept. 26.
Lynch declined to comment at this time. Cox, Feltus and Beller could not be immediately reached for comment.
Looking back
McKinney voters have successfully recalled an elected official before. An affidavit was filed in 2019 to recall former McKinney City Council member La’Shadion Shemwell. More than 3,000 registered McKinney voters signed a petition to remove the council member from office.
More than 72%, or 47,843 McKinney residents, voted in favor of the recall during an election held in November 2020. There were 18,440 votes cast against the recall.
McKinney City Council appointed Chris Thornton in December 2020 to fill the vacancy.
