The campaign took its first formal step on Election Day, November 3, when a Notice of Intent to Recall was published in the San Diego Daily Transcript. According to Times of San Diego, the notice was filed October 29 by five proponents: Jones-Wright, longtime southeastern San Diego community activist Kathleen Harmon, Terrie Best, Donnetta Moore and Shelby Huffaker.
"We seek the recall of Mayor Todd Gloria because he has failed to put everyday San Diegans first and is unfit for office," the group's statement reads. "We have lost confidence in his competence, leadership, judgment, and candor."
The proponents accuse Gloria of mismanaging public money, advancing housing policies that favor developers and failing to adequately address San Diego's homelessness crisis. Their statement also calls for greater transparency and accessibility from a mayor whose administration has faced increasing criticism over its handling of public concerns.
"San Diegans deserve honest answers, transparent decisions, responsible stewardship of public money, and a mayor who is accessible and accountable to the people," the notice states.
The recall faces a substantial challenge before voters will have any opportunity to decide Gloria's political future. Under San Diego's municipal election rules, organizers must gather at least 122,936 valid signatures, representing 15 percent of the city's registered voters at the November 2024 general election. Petition circulation can begin November 24, and organizers must submit the signatures by March 3, 2027, leaving approximately 99 days to collect enough support to qualify for a special election.
The notice must first be served on Gloria, who has an opportunity to submit a formal written response by November 17. If the campaign ultimately qualifies, the City Council would be required to call a special election in which voters would decide whether to remove the mayor and select a potential successor.
Leading the effort is Jones-Wright, a former San Diego County deputy public defender and founding executive director of Community Advocates for Just and Moral Governance, a nonprofit focused on government accountability and civil rights. She challenged Gloria in the March 2024 mayoral primary, finishing third with nearly 16 percent of the vote, and previously ran against District Attorney Summer Stephan in 2018.
Jones-Wright has been an outspoken critic of Gloria's leadership for years, making the recall an extension of a political dispute that predates his reelection. Gloria defeated challenger Larry Turner in November 2024 with approximately 55 percent of the vote, securing a second term scheduled to run through December 2028.
But the years since that victory have brought repeated controversies, particularly concerning the city's finances.
Weeks after winning reelection, Gloria's administration announced a projected $258 million budget deficit, setting the stage for cuts affecting libraries, recreation centers, arts organizations and other public services. The financial problems arrived shortly after voters narrowly rejected Measure E, the mayor-backed proposal to increase San Diego's sales tax by one percentage point.
The administration subsequently pursued a series of new or increased charges, including higher parking meter rates, expanded enforcement hours, paid parking at Balboa Park and new residential trash collection fees. Those decisions generated widespread criticism from residents and businesses already struggling with San Diego's high cost of living.
The Balboa Park parking program became a particularly visible political setback. Introduced in January 2026 as a revenue-generating measure, the fees drew objections from museum operators, employees and visitors before the City Council unanimously voted in June to repeal the program following months of controversy.
The city's trash collection overhaul produced another embarrassing episode. After residents challenged the newly imposed fees, city officials agreed to a settlement reducing certain charges. Then, in September, San Diego acknowledged a billing error that resulted in approximately 87,000 households being improperly charged for trash service, prompting Councilmember Henry Foster III to publicly call for Gloria's resignation.
The mayor's homelessness policies have generated equally intense scrutiny. His administration championed the city's Unsafe Camping Ordinance and proposed converting a Middletown warehouse into a massive homeless shelter, a plan that collapsed in February 2025 amid concerns over its projected costs and lease terms.
A 2026 City Auditor report found that the city's unsheltered homeless population had not decreased citywide following implementation of the camping ordinance, raising questions about the effectiveness of one of Gloria's signature approaches. Although the city's unsheltered count subsequently declined, the overall number of people experiencing homelessness in San Diego rose slightly between 2025 and 2026, according to regional point-in-time counts.
Other decisions have added to the administration's difficulties. In July, the city closed 13 public restrooms around Mission Bay during the busy summer season to reduce expenses, only to reopen them weeks later following widespread backlash. The administration has also faced criticism over police overtime spending, the handling of city-owned real estate and a series of personnel disputes involving senior officials.
Gloria's political standing has reflected some of that frustration. A November 2025 Competitive Edge Research survey reportedly placed his job approval at 33 percent, while a separate survey released the following month found that 62 percent of respondents believed San Diego was headed in the wrong direction.
Those figures do not establish that a majority of voters supports recalling Gloria, and the mayor continues to have supporters who credit his administration with advancing housing construction, infrastructure investment and efforts to address homelessness. Nevertheless, the recall proponents are betting that dissatisfaction across several issues can unite voters who might otherwise disagree politically.
The campaign also raises questions about accessibility and accountability at City Hall. SanDiegoVille has repeatedly sought information and comment from the mayor's office on matters of public interest, often without receiving substantive responses. The recall proponents' criticism of Gloria's responsiveness reflects a broader concern about whether residents and journalists can obtain meaningful answers from the administration on controversial decisions.
Gloria's office will be invited to respond to the recall effort and the specific criticisms raised by its proponents. His formal written response, if submitted, will provide an opportunity to address the campaign's accusations before organizers begin collecting signatures.
San Diego has seen an attempted mayoral recall before. In 2013, activists moved to recall Mayor Bob Filner amid allegations of sexual harassment, but Filner resigned before the campaign could qualify for an election. No sitting San Diego mayor has been removed through a successful recall vote.
Whether this latest effort gains enough traction remains uncertain. Collecting nearly 123,000 valid signatures in just over three months will require substantial organization, volunteers and financial resources, and the existence of a recall campaign does not mean Gloria will ultimately face a special election.
Still, the effort represents a significant escalation in the political pressure surrounding San Diego's mayor. After years of budget battles, controversial fees, homelessness disputes and public criticism, Gloria now faces an organized campaign seeking to put his continued leadership directly before the voters.
Originally published on November 3, 2026.
