Twice in the past two years, Lisbon residents have voted to recall a councilor. In both instances, the councilor retained the seat.

The second recall vote count was in favor of removing the councilor but, due to a turnout technicality, the gentleman remained in office.

As a response to these recalls, the Lisbon Town Council is attempting to revamp the charter to make it more difficult to remove one of their own.

In my opinion, the existing recall barrier that requires voter turnout to be 30 percent of the turnout of the last presidential or gubernatorial election is almost mathematically impossible to hurdle. I cannot imagine trying to make it more difficult for the public to remove an undesirable councilor.

If the council really wants to improve the recall procedure, they should remove the existing 30 percent barrier and abide by the wishes of the majority vote.

We will have to wait to see what conditions they add or, better yet, remove from the recall procedure.

I hope our councilors aren’t attempting to guarantee their own job security with this charter change. Elected officials should always remember they serve at the pleasure of their constituents.

Frederick E. Stacey, Lisbon