Auburn mayor recall fails, Peru recall underway

 AUBURN – A recall effort naming Auburn Mayor Chris Erickson failed, but the Nemaha County election office is switching gears to Peru, where paperwork to recall Mayor Katy Propst-Novak has been requested.

Nemaha County Clerk Diane Johnson said Auburn circulator Amanda Powell turned in signatures by the deadline, but the recall fell well short of the 301 signatures needed because election officials could not verify 12 of the 21 petition pages turned in.

Powell had used social media to invite people to locations, including her home, to sign petitions. Johnson said her office lacked evidence that Powell actually witnessed the signatures.

Johnson said state law requires circulators to have their signature notarized and requires circulators to be present, witness signatures and read statements to people before they sign. She said her office could not verify if a notarized circulator was present when petitions were signed.

Johnson said petitions have to be handled carefully.

Johnson: “You have to go by the law on how you handle it.”

She said the bottom of the petition say the circulator has read the statement and witnessed the signatures.

Meanwhile, the Nemaha County Clerk’s Office has prepared paperwork for petitions to recall Peru Mayor Katy Propst-Novak.

Novak, who attended elementary school in Peru and returned to the city after 20 years, was elected to city council in 2023 and mayor last November.

In requesting the petitions, Phillip Wemhoff alleges misappropriate handling of city funds and inappropriate communications with the city council and city employees. He claims she has not had the community’s best interest since being elected.

In her defense statement, Novak said she stands by her record of serving Peru with integrity and transparency.

Novak: “Claims of financial misappropriation are false. Our finances are reviewed monthly by the city council and the finance committee."

She said she has worked to strengthen communications, including launching a public newsletter.

Novak: “My heart is for this community and I trust neighbors will see the truth in our shared progress.”

Wemhoff has up to 20 days to pick up the forms and then 30 days to collect at least 57 signatures, or 35 percent of the total votes cast in the most recent general election.