McKinney Recall Fight Intensifies as Petitioners Allege Intimidation 

The McKinney City Council recall effort has been underway for nearly a month, with petitioners and their supporters alleging that some former elected officials, city-affiliated individuals, and other residents have attempted to discourage people from signing the petition. 

Petitioners and their supporters, including some Texans who do not live in McKinney, told The Daily Signal they have faced criticism and what they describe as intimidation or harassment because of their involvement in the recall effort. 

“Opponents of the McKinney recall aren’t just arguing the issues, they’re trying to scare people off from signing. Businesses that let us collect signatures get flooded with calls until they back out. People get followed to their cars, filmed at the tables, and named online so others can pile on,” said petition volunteer Ashley Marie. 

Among those opposing the recall is former McKinney Mayor George Fuller, who has used social media to criticize the effort and question some of its supporters. 

Why the Recall Began 

The recall effort followed the McKinney City Council’s unanimous Aug. 4 vote to approve a mosque relocation proposal, which would be operated by the McKinney Islamic Association. 

The proposed site is a 5-acre tract along Virginia Parkway near two residential neighborhoods and a high school. It would include a 37,000-square-foot facility with a mosque, educational spaces, a gymnasium, and meeting rooms. It will also be designed to accommodate 3,000 people. 

Residents who spoke at the meeting expressed concerns about the proposed site. Some said Sharia law is incompatible with American traditions and values, while others defended the mosque. 

About a week after the approval, a group of residents filed a petition seeking to recall Mayor Bill Cox and Council Members Justin Beller, Geré Feltus, and Ernest Lynch. The recall petition lists “a loss of public confidence in the ability of the officers named herein to faithfully represent the citizens of the City of McKinney” as its stated ground. 

However, the petitioners’ effort has drawn opposition from residents and former city officials, including Fuller. 

Former Mayor Voices Opposition to Recall 

Fuller has used his Facebook account to criticize the recall effort. 

In a post made the day after the recall effort was announced, Fuller wrote that the names and addresses of people who sign the petition would become available for lawful disclosure once the petition is filed. 

“A group of five people in our community have begun a recall effort targeting four members of the McKinney City Council. What they are not telling those they ask to sign it [sic] is that the day that petition is filed it is available for lawful disclosure and will be published, and the petition includes the names and addresses of every person who signed it,” Fuller wrote. “People have every right to sign a recall petition. But signing a petition to remove elected officials is a political act, and those who participate will have to stand publicly behind that decision.” 

Fuller also wrote that residents should be free to sign the petition but should be prepared to publicly stand behind their decision. 

“If you put your name behind an effort to remove elected officials for following the law, be prepared to stand publicly behind your decision and be accountable for the consequences it has for this community,” Fuller wrote. 

Fuller told the Daily Signal that his post was intended to inform residents, not intimidate them. 

“Regarding my statement that petition signatures, including names and addresses, become public records is simply the law and the public nature of the process,” Fuller said. “I did not create that requirement, and informing someone that their signature on a government petition becomes public is not ‘doxxing.’” 

“I have never advocated harassment, threats, or retaliation against anyone who signs,” Fuller added. 

A few days after the recall effort had been announced, Fuller shared a video that he said had been provided to him by a woman who allegedly spoke with someone involved in the petition effort about the reasons for the recall and why residents should sign. 

Fuller told the Daily Signal that he did not create, record, or produce the video and that it was provided to him by another person. 

“The person who recorded the exchange told me that the woman recorded was with the recall effort and was actively encouraging her to sign the recall petition,” Fuller said. “That was the information I had when I shared it.” 

“My concern in sharing the video was the substance of what was being said and whether residents were being given accurate information when being encouraged to sign the petition,” Fuller added. 

Ashley Marie, who was running the petition site that day, disputed that characterization. She told the Daily Signal that the woman in the video had spoken with someone who was at the location only to sign the petition and was not a recall volunteer. 

“A concerned citizen came to a petition location to sign. Someone recorded her talking, including a kickback claim that was not part of the recall and was not coming from us,” Marie said. “Former Mayor George Fuller then posted a video using my photo over that woman’s audio, so it looked like I said it. I didn’t. She wasn’t a volunteer. She talked to me first, I stuck to the actual grounds of the recall, and then she went and talked to someone else.” 

“They still put my face on her words and called her a recall volunteer. That’s how they tried to pin a lie on me,” Marie added. 

In another Facebook post, Fuller singled out three recall supporters and raised questions about their credibility. 

The post mentioned Luis Maldonado, Eddie Isa, and Paul Chabot. 

The post included an image of Maldonado’s 2021 arrest record. Maldonado subsequently sent the Daily Signal a statement explaining the circumstances surrounding his arrest and said his ex-wife had made allegations that he abused and trafficked her. 

“I’m not going to sit here and pretend I’ve handled every situation in my life perfectly. I haven’t. I’ve made mistakes. I’ve trusted the wrong people. I’ve reacted emotionally. I’ve been arrogant. I’ve had to look myself in the mirror and ask God to show me where I needed to change,” Maldonado wrote. “But I also know what I did and what I didn’t do.” 

Maldonado then addressed Fuller. 

“So, George, after all these years, maybe there is finally something you and I can agree on. Our legal system is deeply flawed,” Maldonado wrote. “I wouldn’t wish the last seven years of my life on George Fuller. And that’s saying something! I laugh at your weak attempt at intimidation.” 

“Parents, teach your children discernment in choosing a partner. McKinney, let this man know how much you deplore the city council selling off your land! Thanks for helping make the conversation public, Georgie,” he added. 

The post also mentions Chabot, who is involved in a defamation lawsuit with former state Rep. Frederick Frazier. The lawsuit alleges that Chabot defamed Frazier by posting false and injurious statements across social media platforms. 

Chabot did not speak to Fuller’s post; instead, he reiterated that people must be respected whether they agree with the recall or not. 

“It is equally important that McKinney residents stand together against intimidation,” Chabot told the Daily Signal. “No one should be threatened, harassed, publicly targeted, or made to fear consequences because they signed—or considered signing—a recall petition. People may support or oppose the recall, but everyone’s right to participate freely in the democratic process must be respected.” 

Isa was also mentioned after he posted a vulgar video in response to a person on X who asked Isa whether he had filled up the “room with all of the influencing that you did.” 

Fuller told the Daily Signal that his criticism was directed at people who had publicly involved themselves in the recall debate. 

“Luis Maldonado, Paul Chabot, and Eddie Isa have all voluntarily entered the public discussion. Challenging their statements, conduct, credibility, or, in appropriate circumstances, publicly available information relevant to their credibility, is political speech, not intimidation,” Fuller said. 

Fuller Says Recall Dispute Has Affected His Business 

Fuller shared with the Daily Signal that since speaking in opposition to the recall, he has faced problems of his own while running his business. 

Fuller explained that a group had chosen him to build three homes for their organization, but after multiple social media claims circulated, they told him they “felt they needed to go a different direction.” 

“They were concerned about all of the social media claims of misconduct, supposed investigations, and the attacks on other people and developers that I had done business with in the past,” Fuller said. “Their concern was not that any of the nonsense was true, but they did not want their organization, a nonprofit, dragged into conversation with the same baseless speculation, as they feared it could impact their donor base in the community.”   

“My point is, the baseless allegations and attacks on me have impacted my business significantly. That said, it does not deter from taking the position that I have and will continue to do,” Fuller added. 

Fuller also said that intimidation and harassment are happening in the community, but it’s not coming from the opposition. 

“There is deception and intimidation, but it is coming from that group,” Fuller said. 

Other Residents Accused of Intimidating Recall Supporters 

Other residents have also been accused by recall supporters of attempting to discourage people from participating in the petition effort. 

In a Facebook post made by the Collin County Journal, Paul Shirar, who has been identified as a former McKinney Housing Finance Corporation board member, commented that people who sign the recall petition “should absolutely be afraid.” 

“Any dumba– willing to sign this petition is openly admitting publicly how little they know about their own government,” Shirar wrote. “It is literally a petition signed ONLY by morons and bigots. These buffoons deserve to be ridiculed and should absolutely be afraid.” 

A McKinney resident, Joshua Dukes, also shared a photo of a note he said was left at his door. The note reads, “Allah sees your sins. Leave us alone or face his judgement!” 

Dukes said police were called, and the letter was turned over as evidence. 

Another incident involved an anonymous person who placed a pink flyer on a tree in the community. The flyer said: “It breaks our hearts that you may have been tricked into signing the racially motivated recall. We know this process can be terribly confusing for some people. And surely, you didn’t realize the organizers don’t even vote in municipal elections?” 

“You can still call the City Secretary to remove your name before the public record is released. We all make mistake!” The flyer concluded. 

Additionally, a voicemail was left at a business office building by a local resident, telling the front desk that one of the offices inside was hosting a recall petition. The caller, whose name has been redacted, said that if the office building is allowing this to take place, he and others will “get word out everywhere.” 

“I’m not sure you’re aware, but your office building, at least one of the offices within it, is having a recall petition drive,” the caller said. “It’s run by a woman named Ashley Marie, among others, who doesn’t even vote, and they’re tearing this city apart with their hate.” 

“I just thought you should know this, and would love for you to give me a call back, and let me know if you’re allowing this, because I’ll get word out everywhere about your business, and so will others,” the caller added. 

Recall Effort Prompts Federal Civil Rights Complaint 

The recall effort has also prompted a federal civil rights complaint. 

Last week, Collin County Citizens for Integrity filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice alleging political voter intimidation aimed at discouraging McKinney residents from signing the petition. 

The group asked the DOJ to review what it described as “developing and increasingly concerning situation in McKinney, Texas, involving conduct that appears intended to intimidate, harass, discourage, or otherwise interfere with registered voters who are considering signing a lawful recall petition involving elected officials of the City of McKinney.”  

Chabot told the Daily Signal that the recall is bigger “than any one elected official or political disagreement.” 

“It is about whether residents have the right to hold their government accountable, peacefully express their views, sign a lawful recall petition, and ultimately make their voices heard at the ballot box,” Chabot said. 

McKinney residents should stand tall, reject intimidation, and never surrender the rights that generations of Americans have sacrificed to defend,” Chabot added. 

Petition organizers have until Sept. 26 to submit 5,805 signatures from registered McKinney voters. If the petition meets the required threshold, the recall process would allow a special election to be held. 

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