Notes From A Petitioner

By Kenneth E. Tozier

Small town USA, a City Council member announced his intention to resign his position to run for mayor creating a two year vacancy on council. The City Charter empowered the Council to appoint an individual to fill the vacancy. One citizen was passionate about the right to representative government and insisted the vacancy should be filled by popular vote. Without the support of City Council, the only way to preserve this constitutional right was to change the City Charter, thus the Petitioner evolved from an ordinary citizen to the proactive representative for the right to elect those who govern. The Council would have appointed one of their own to rubber stamp the views of the few at the expense of the many. This story chronicles the events of an individual's evolution from citizen to Petitioner with precise details and the subsequent changes in view of both the Petitioner and a supporting electorate. This is a classic example of rights articulated in the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances." Amendment I. "One man on a mission. A mission to vindicate his constitutional right to elect his representative in a city council election in a small town on the outskirts of Tampa, Florida. The fight was long and heated but he persisted against the entrenched governmental forces that wanted to preserve their authority to appoint a new representative. He crafted the strategy, attended meeting after meeting, walked the streets, reviewed the Florida statutes on municipal elections, solicited votes on a charter amendment and never gave up. Along the route, there were multiple opportunities for the opposition to declare victory and stop the ultimate goal of charter reform, but he persisted and he won." Greg Darrow Thomas, Esq. This is a must read for those who hold dear their individual rights and freedoms.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0991262131
• ISBN13: 9780991262137
• Release Date: January 2013
• Publisher: KET Corporation
• Length: 200 Pages
• Weight: 3.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 7.0" x 8.5"