Mayor Recall

We are partnering with concerned

residents to put a recall on the

ballot to restore transparency

and integrity to our City Hall.

Heights Citizens for Democracy is working with an ever-growing and diverse group of Cleveland Heights residents to recall the current mayor, Kahlil Seren.

Every day that Seren remains in office, our city is at risk of harm. While there are many egregious actions and behaviors that concern residents and reflect badly on our city, we are particularly alarmed by those that result in immediate harm to Cleveland Heights.

During Seren’s time as mayor:

  • The City has failed to submit financial audits to the State of Ohio in a timely manner, missing deadlines and then missing extensions of deadlines. This results in risk of compounding fees and penalties; we also risk being placed on the State’s Unauditable List, which may result in legal action from the State.

  • The City has seen extremely high staff turnover, particularly at the director level and notably the hire and resignation of three City Administrators in as many years. In particular, the position of the City Administrator, which is required by our City Charter, is currently unfilled. These vacancies result in inconsistent and diminishing quality of city services.

  • He submitted an incomplete budget for 2025, lacking required information for Council review, as required by the City Charter. Rather than working with Council toward solutions, Seren became adversarial, publicly mischaracterizing the actions of Council and maligning Council for acting responsibly in the face of poor financial management.

  • There is a growing collection of employee reports of a hostile workplace, Human Resources complaints, and at least one EEOC complaint. These not only make it difficult for the City to attract needed staff and retain talent, but it also places our City at risk of costly lawsuits and litigation.

We have no confidence in Seren’s ability or willingness to conduct City business, lead City Hall, and execute the mayor’s duties in accordance with the City Charter.

Many people of Cleveland Heights feel frustrated and want to do something to change the current trajectory of our City. For this reason, we are seeking a democratic solution, granted by our City Charter: We seek to recall the mayor so our City can begin to recover and heal.

Want to sign the petition? Reach out!

We are posting signing events on our Facebook page each week, but if you can’t make it to one, let us know, and we can come to you.

Frequently asked questions

  • No. The recall will not be held as a special election (which would cost money). It will simply be added to the ballot of an election already happening. The cost is already incurred.

  • tl;dr: To get Seren out sooner.

    It is our position that the city is being harmed and put at risk each day Seren continues to hold office. We hold that the sooner we can get him to vacate City Hall, the better.

    In particular, in light of the 2025 budget process debacle that began in December 2024, combined with Seren’s track record of refusing to cooperate and collaborate, we do not want him to oversee the creation of the 2026 budget, which will greatly impact the incoming mayor’s ability to put their vision into action.

    What’s more, when we get the needed signatures and they are certified by the Board of Elections, Seren will have 5 days to either resign or allow the recall to go to the ballot (City Charter, Article IV, Section 11). And a resignation is better for him than a recall.

    So, if we achieve our goal and get the needed signatures quickly, he will either resign shortly thereafter, or the voters get to decide whether to remove him from office as early as September.

    If that passes, he would be removed from office as soon as the election results are certified by the Board of Elections.

    If it takes us a little longer to collect the needed signatures, then, again, once we submit them and they are certified, he may resign, or we vote in November, which would prevent Seren from creating the 2026 budget..

  • In Article IV, Section 10 of the City Charter, it says that if the office becomes vacant, “the President of Council shall become Mayor, and shall cease to be a member of Council. If the President of Council is unable to assume the duties of Mayor, the Vice President of Council shall become Mayor, and shall cease to be a member of Council. If the President and Vice President are unable to assume the duties of Mayor, Council shall elect from its members a Mayor, who will cease to be a member of Council. If none of the members of Council are able to assume the duties of Mayor, the Council shall appoint a Mayor.”

    This interim mayor would hold office until a mayoral candidate is elected by the voters and subsequently sworn in.

  • To place a mayoral recall on the ballot, we need signatures amounting to at least 25% of the number of people who voted in the prior mayoral election, and that number is 2,900.

  • Any Cleveland Heights registered voter, regardless of whether they voted in the prior mayoral election, can sign the petition.

  • Here is the text of the petition:

    “We, the undersigned, electors of the City of Cleveland Heights, Ohio, hereby petition for the recall of Kahlil Seren, who holds the office of Mayor in the City of Cleveland Heights, in accordance with the City Charter article IV, § 11 (not more than 200 words):

    • Failure to submit timely financial audits to the State of Ohio, placing our City at risk of compounding fees and penalties, as well being placed on the state’s Unauditable List, which may result in legal action from the State.

    • Extremely high staff turnover, particularly at the director level, and notably the hire and resignation of three City Administrators within three years. The position of City Administrator is currently unfilled, in violation of the City Charter and resulting in diminishing City service delivery and deteriorating infrastructure.

    • Submission of an incomplete 2025 budget, lacking required information for Council review, as required by the City Charter. Rather than working toward solutions, the mayor took a confrontational approach that fostered public alarm and distrust.

    • An EEOC complaint, HR complaints, and employee reports of a hostile workplace, as well as likely retaliatory actions against employees, and thereby placing the City at risk of costly lawsuits and litigation.

    The undersigned have no confidence in Mayor Seren’s ability or willingness to conduct city business, lead City Hall, and execute the Mayor’s duties in accordance with the City Charter. Each day he holds office, the City of Cleveland Heights continues to be put at risk and harmed.”

  • Thank you for stepping up! Just send us an email, and we’ll go from there.

Join us!

If you would like to add your name as a supporter of Heights Citizens for Democracy, let us know.

“Man's capacity for justice makes democracy possible, but man's inclination to injustice makes democracy necessary.”

Reinhold Niebuhr