SALISBURY, Md. — A social media campaign calling for the removal of Salisbury Mayor Randy Taylor has surfaced online, though the individuals behind the effort remain unidentified.
A pair of accounts under the name “Recall Randy” launched on Facebook and Instagram early this month. The pages are filled with brightly colored graphics criticizing Mayor Taylor’s leadership and calling for a recall election. Despite the campaign’s public messaging, the organizers have not revealed their identities.
“I think there are people who think that I'm fighting for the right things in the City of Salisbury,” Taylor said in response. “I think it's a really sad state of affairs that when people don't agree the first thing they reach for is a recall kind of environment, which I don't think is very productive.”
Several figures in Salisbury’s political scene told WBOC they were either unaware of who started the campaign or declined to say. We sent a message directly to the “Recall Randy” Facebook page and received the following response: “We are not sharing the names of those involved with the page because Mayor Taylor has previously contacted the employers of residents who publicly criticized him.”
The group also posted a video from the recent ribbon cutting ceremony for the Mitchell Landing Apartments, where Dave Layfield, owner of Green Street Housing, delivered pointed remarks about the mayor.
“And it's time that he be removed,” Layfield is heard saying in the clip.
In a follow-up interview, Layfield said he supports the effort to remove Taylor but is not behind it.
"I'm a person who has a strong sense of justice, and I think when something is unjust it needs to be called out,” Layfield said. “Standing in front of this project, with this beautiful facade and with people moving in now, felt that was a good time to call him out for what he's doing.”
Taylor, meanwhile, says he hopes the city can move forward despite differences of opinion.
“Hopefully we can work through our differences and move forward, but no party is going to get everything they want,” he said.
In a statement issued in response to the campaign, Salisbury City Council President D’Shawn Doughty said, “The Council will not involve itself in any recall effort. However, we trust the democratic process and support the active engagement of our citizens in every step of the electoral process, as outlined in the City Charter.”
As of Tuesday, the Salisbury City Clerk's office confirmed that there is no formal or active petition to recall Mayor Taylor.
Under the city charter, a recall effort begins with a petition signed by at least 30% of registered voters within the city. Based on 2023 voter registration data, that equates to approximately 5,257 signatures. Organizers would have 90 days to collect those signatures, which would then be verified by election officials. If certified, the question of the mayor’s removal would go to Salisbury voters in a special recall election.