Independence sets special election date for John Perkins recall over data center
Some Independence residents showed up to the polls in April with a mission in mind: Kick out local leaders who voted in favor of more than $6 billion in tax breaks for an incoming $150 billion hyperscale artificial intelligence data center.
Nebius, a Dutch AI company, recently broke ground on the supersize AI factory, which will be more than twice the size of Arrowhead Stadium and will be fueled by its own power plant. Five current and former City Council members — Bridget McCandless, Jared Fears, Jennie Vaught, Heather Wiley and John Perkins — voted on March 2 to approve 90% to 98% breaks on property and materials taxes for Nebius and the data center over the next 20 years.
In April, residents voted out Fears and McCandless, also ending the latter’s mayoral run. Now, they’ll have a chance to return to the polls for a special election to recall Perkins after 18 years on and off representing Independence’s First District.
The Independence City Council has officially confirmed that a special election addressing a Perkins recall vote will take place Sept. 1, following two rounds of resident petitions toward a referendum to recall the longtime local leader.
The recall vote will be the only question on the ballot during the September special election. Though Independence residents will vote in an existing Jackson County municipal election Aug. 4, the certification date for that election passed on May 26, making the Perkins recall question ineligible for inclusion.
Second-chance petition
The Jackson County Election Board recently certified 1,214 valid signatures on the petition to recall Perkins, clearing the threshold to put a recall vote to a district ballot. Residents had needed to collect signatures representing 8% or more of registered First District voters, or about 1,100 signatures.
The recall effort was spearheaded by the Independence Action Committee, a political action group that residents formed to oppose the data center.
More than 20 “petition circulators” held daily signature drives through the district, knocking on doors in residential areas and spending hours on street corners.
Organizers initially came up short, submitting 745 signatures on May 28. Under the Independence City Charter, they had an additional seven days to submit additional signatures once the Jackson County Election Board rejected their first round.
IAC treasurer and founding member McKenna Cobb previously said that the recall “has always been about giving First District residents a voice and allowing voters to decide whether Councilman Perkins should continue representing them.”
Cobb also previously said that residents’ participation in the petition effort signals a growing interest in Independence politics, sparked in part by backlash to the data center.
Recall costs criticized
At Monday night’s council meeting, some residents debated whether the vote is worth the expense to taxpayers.
The City Council estimates that the special election will cost $164,400 and will require a budget amendment in order to release the necessary funds. The council will hear a special agenda item on July 6, an ordinance to approve both the special election and the extra expense.
GK Callahan, an Independence resident recently appointed to the Nebius Community Advisory Board, called the planned recall election an “inappropriate use of taxpayer dollars.”
“What has been decided and voted on in the past has been voted on and decided, and I don’t think those taxpayer dollars need to be spent this way,” Callahan said. “If you’re talking about public benefit for the community, that money could be spent in much better places to improve the city of Independence.”
Concerns over special election costs also sparked conversations among Jackson County residents during the September 2025 election to recall former Jackson County Executive Frank White Jr. That election, which saw White recalled in a landslide vote, cost about $2 million out of the Jackson County general fund.
Recently elected Independence Councilmember Jackie Dorman said she was encouraged to see so many residents on both sides of the recall effort show up to speak Monday night.
“I appreciate the number of people that are here,” Dorman said. “I think this is indicative of the democracy that we have, and having different opinions.”
Perkins supporters emerge
As details for the recall are finalized, those who would rather see Perkins stay in the district are starting to speak up as well. Several people who live and work in the Englewood Arts District praised Perkins for his involvement, and the council’s investment, in the district specifically.
Perkins was previously criticized by petition organizers for a perceived lack of engagement with district residents. He did not host a town hall event or informational session leading up to the council’s March 2 vote on data center tax breaks, while similar events took place in some other districts.
First District resident Darren Sederwall, an assistant pastor at Englewood Church, said at Monday’s City Council meeting that Perkins “has faithfully served the residents of our district with diligence, dedication [and] integrity.”
“Englewood Church has been part of the First District for more than 80 years,” Sederwall said. “During that time, we have witnessed the importance of a strong and principled leadership in our community.”
Torrence Kelley, who lives in Kansas City but serves as the president of the Englewood Business Association, said that council members’ votes on data center funding should not be used to discount their ongoing work supporting small businesses in the Englewood Arts District.
The Englewood Arts District, sitting within Perkins’ jurisdiction, runs along E Winner Road from Sterling Avenue to South Ralston Avenue and is home to several shops, restaurants, art galleries, office spaces and public event venues. The District hosts an art walk and outdoor market every third Friday and recently hosted Independence’s Pride festivities.
Kelley suggested that those upset with the data center focus on advocating for stronger environmental regulations at the state and federal level rather than “directing our energy towards finding someone to blame here locally.”
“If… the goal is simply to punish members of the council for making a difficult decision,” Kelley said, “then I would respectfully suggest that once you are finished, you turn the same expectations inward. Because the demand that makes these projects necessary ultimately comes from all of us.”
First District Resident Joanie Flanagan said that while knocking doors with the recall petition, she’s learned that her neighbors outside of the Englewood Arts District feel consistently ignored by the City Council. She said that if Perkins is recalled, she hopes that it motivates other council members to respond to residents’ concerns in a more timely manner.
“I love the city and I love the stuff that we’ve done,” Flanagan said. “The development of the square and of Englewood - I love that. But the neighborhoods have been left behind.
The people have been left behind and the people haven’t been listened to…I mean, people had complaints the length of my arm that they had called the city about, tried to get addressed and couldn’t get addressed in these neighborhoods.”
