On Monday, Judge Kyle Cohen gave Fort Myers Beach Town Councilman John King some good news when he basically ruled King could remain in his seat, even if he lost the recall vote, while an appeal the recallers filed is being heard.
Voters will decide Tuesday whether or not John King and Karen Woodson should be recalled. They will then vote for three candidates in case the recall is successful: Tom Brady, Rebecca Link, and Ed Rood.
Woodson has appealed her court case which was dismissed by Judge Cohen. Former Council member Bill Veach, the recall committee co-chair, has appealed Cohen’s ruling on John King, which was that the petition to recall King was “legally insufficient.”
Cohen ruled Monday that while the election will go forward as planned, and the results will be released to the public when the polls close, King can retain his seat until the Appeals Court rules on the Veach appeal. It’s unknown how long it will take the Appeals Court to rule on the case. Could take days, could take months.
In a previous ruling Cohen deemed one of the three accusations against King was too vague and did not meet the criteria set forth by the state legislature in their recall law. Veach and the recallers alleged that King used his power to fire contracted employees. Cohen ruled the statement wasn’t specific enough being that council members do have the power (by council vote) to remove the Town Manager and Town Attorney.
Cohen ruled that the petition to recall Karen Woodson did meet the criteria set forth in the state statute and dismissed her case, which she has appealed. Woodson and King have denied all the accusations against them which include violating the Sunshine Law and accepting gifts from developers. They have also filed defamation lawsuits against Veach and former Mayor Ray Murphy. While town taxpayers must foot the legal bills for Woodson and King in the recall, they have to pay legal fees for the defamation lawsuits out of their own pockets.
The recall election is Tuesday from 7AM to 7PM at Bay Oaks. As of Monday, 645 people have voted by mail. There are about 3,400 registered voters on Fort Myers Beach. Woodson would not say whether she should step down if she loses the recall vote Tuesday or try to stay in her seat until the appeal is heard.
Both the Woodson and King seats are up for election in November of 2026.