Spokane County Commissioner Al French faces recall attempt over PFAS controversy

Voters could soon be asked if they want to recall Spokane County Commissioner Al French — arguably one of the region's most powerful Republicans.

On Tuesday, Aug. 27, a newly formed coalition of community members and environmental groups filed recall charges against French, alleging that the long-serving commissioner attempted to cover up PFAS contamination in West Plains drinking water.

PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) are a family of so-called "forever chemicals" that have been linked to cancer, heart disease, thyroid disease and other health issues in humans.

In 2017, members of the Spokane International Airport board, which French is and was a member of, started to become aware that firefighting chemicals used at the airport contained PFAS that seeped into groundwater in the West Plains and Airway Heights.

Fairchild Air Force Base had tested for and publicly announced PFAS contamination at and around the base that same year and started providing well testing and clean water to nearby residents. But the contamination results at Spokane International Airport didn't become public until last year, and residents who live nearby didn't receive testing for their private wells until earlier this year.

In his run for reelection this year, French has faced increased criticism for failing to act quickly and allegedly working to downplay the issue. The recall charge includes public documents outlining how in 2020 and 2021, Spokane County staff were not allowed to accept state grant money to test for PFAS as French appeared to prevent the item from going to a vote before the Board of County Commissioners.

"Al French has betrayed us," said Bob Gearheart, a West Plains resident who is part of the recall attempt. "He has covered up that the water we drink is poisoning us. It is just dishonest and morally wrong."

Gearheart added that he previously voted for French. Not anymore.

French has vehemently denied a coverup and insisted that the criticism is politically motivated. He did not initially respond to requests for comment from the Inlander and other media outlets last week. But on Sunday, Sept. 1, he released a statement describing the recall as a “far-left political ploy,” a “desperate attempt to undermine the will of the voters” and a “waste of taxpayer resources.”

“The claims made in the recall petition have been thoroughly debunked by credible sources, public records, and the media,” the statement said. “Notably, none of the other Airport Board members were listed in the recall, despite the fact two are continuing to serve as elected officials. Despite this, the far-left group continues to push a false narrative in an attempt to sway public opinion ahead of the upcoming election.”

The recall charge was filed by the "Clean Water Accountability Coalition," which includes West Plains residents, the progressive advocacy group Fuse Washington and the nonprofit Washington Conservation Action. The coalition announced the recall effort at a press conference on Tuesday morning that was timed with the launch of a website with information about French's role in the PFAS controversy.

French "used his authority to block investigations into the public health crisis," said Knoll Lowney, an attorney representing the coalition. "He did this to protect the airport, where he served as a board member and an officer. As a result, his constituents unknowingly drank poison water."

The Environmental Protection Agency began offering residents who live near the airport free PFAS testing for private well water earlier this year.


When the Inlander asked French in March why it had taken seven years to get testing for those near the airport, he pointed to the complicated web of agencies involved in the process.

“Airport leadership is working with the Department of Ecology and the Federal Aviation Administration because some of the contamination we’ve experienced on the airport is a direct result of directives we got from the FAA,” French said at the time. “So, that process is underway and they’ll be working to resolve that between the three agencies.”

(The March Inlander story was cited along with several other local news articles in the recall charges.)

On Tuesday, Mary Benham, who has lived in the West Plains for 45 years and is the voter who signed the recall charges, said French has “betrayed the oath of office as county commissioner.”


“Mr. French did not disclose to us, his constituents, that there are dangerous PFAS chemicals at the Spokane airport,” Benham said. “These chemicals are now in our drinking water.”

After the press conference, Benham invited a gaggle of reporters to follow her as she officially delivered the recall charges to Spokane County Auditor Vicky Dalton.

The elections office was buzzing with activity. As she examined the paperwork, Dalton explained that her office is currently swamped recounting votes in the razor-thin race for state public lands commissioner. Dalton accepted the paperwork and told Benham the recall charge will begin working its way through the necessary bureaucracy.

Dalton has been in office administering Spokane County elections since 1999. The last time Spokane had a recall election was in 2005, she says, when 65% of voters opted to remove then-Spokane Mayor Jim West from office amid allegations of sexual abuse. (French was a Spokane City Council member at the time.) There have since been several other recall attempts that were thrown out by judges and didn't go to a vote.

"I had only hoped to have ever done that one," Dalton tells the Inlander. "Because it's rough, it's the roughest type of election that there is to administer."

Recall elections can be complicated, divisive and emotionally taxing for the community, she says.

"It was very contentious," Dalton says. "Usually elections are about putting people into office, and [recall elections] are incredibly unusual, because it removes someone from office."


Recalling an elected official is a lengthy process.

Anyone can file a recall charge with the county auditor. From there, the prosecuting attorney's office prepares a synopsis of the charge that is less than 200 words to appear on the ballot.

The synopsis is then sent to Superior Court, which has 15 days to evaluate the synopsis and hold a hearing to determine "whether or not the acts stated in the charge satisfy the criteria for which a recall petition may be filed."

"The court is not determining guilt or innocence," Dalton says. "They're just determining 'Does this charge rise to the level of sufficiency for a recall?'"

If approved by the court, the sponsors of the recall would then have 180 days to gather signatures. The number of signatures they need is equal to 25% of the total number of votes cast in the last election for that elected official's position.

Based on French's last election in 2022, the sponsors of his recall attempt would need to gather 11,535 signatures.

If the signature gathering is successful, the county auditor will call a special election. State law says the special election can't take place in between a primary and general election. So, if French's recall attempt did move forward, it would have to come to a vote some time after the Nov. 5 general election, Dalton says.

French is currently seeking a fifth term in office as county commissioner. His Democratic challenger is Molly Marshall, a retired Washington Air National Guard member who has repeatedly criticized French's handling of the PFAS issue during her run for office. (Marshall has been endorsed by Fuse, the progressive group promoting the recall effort.)

Marshall got 48.6% of the votes in the August primary, and many Democrats see this year's election as a rare opportunity to break decades of Republican rule in Spokane County. The County Commission currently has three Republicans and two Democrats.

If French ends up losing his reelection bid in November, the recall petition would be cancelled, says Lowney, the lawyer for the coalition.

If French wins, however, the recall could move forward and go to voters (if the court approves the charges). The 200-word synopsis of the recall charges would appear on the ballot alongside a 250-word rebuttal from French.

If a majority in that special election were to vote yes, French would immediately be removed from office.

Under state law, the Spokane County Republican Central Committee would then nominate three replacements for the remaining County Commissioners to choose from to fill that seat.

If a majority of remaining commissioners can't agree on who to appoint within 60 days — a plausible occurrence with two Republicans and two Democrats — Washington's governor would step in and appoint someone. The appointee would hold office until the next general election. 

"It's incredibly different from any other election process," Dalton says.

After giving Dalton the paperwork on Tuesday, Benham said she felt "satisfied."

"I'm grateful to the system we have in this country, sincerely, that an individual can be heard," Benham said.

French did not attend the County Commission morning briefing or legislative meeting on Tuesday. He was attending a groundbreaking ceremony for the expansion of an aerospace manufacturing facility near the airport.

You can read the full recall charges filed against French here:

Editor's Note: This story was updated on Tuesday, Sept. 3, to include a statement from Al French that was sent over the weekend.