How to Remove or Recall Your HOA Board Members in Arizona

In Arizona, homeowners are not stuck with a board that won’t follow the rules. State law gives the members — not the board — the power to remove directors, and no provision in your declaration or bylaws can take that power away. Here is how the removal (“recall”) process works.

The law that gives you this power

For a planned community (most HOAs), removal of board members is governed by A.R.S. § 33-1813. For a condominium, the parallel provision is A.R.S. § 33-1243. Both say, in effect, that notwithstanding anything in your governing documents, the members can remove a director. That “notwithstanding” is important — a board can’t write a bylaw that blocks a recall.

The removal process, step by step

1. Read your bylaws and the statute together. The statute sets the floor; your bylaws may set a lower petition threshold, but they can’t raise it or eliminate the right. Pull the exact text from § 33-1813 (or § 33-1243 for a condo).
2. Circulate a removal petition. Members sign a written petition calling for the removal of one or more directors and for a special meeting to vote on it. The statute sets the number of signatures required (a percentage of the association’s votes), unless your bylaws specify a lower number.
3. The board must call a special meeting. Once a valid petition is submitted, the board is required to call and give notice of a special meeting of the members within the time the statute allows. It doesn’t get to sit on it.
4. Members vote. At the special meeting, the directors named in the petition are removed if the required vote is met (check the exact threshold in the statute and your bylaws). A director removed by the members can’t simply be reappointed by the remaining board over the members’ wishes.
5. Fill the vacancy. Your bylaws control how the seat is filled — sometimes by the remaining board, sometimes by a member vote at the same meeting.

Do it by the book

Recalls fail on technicalities more often than on the merits. Protect your effort:

• Get the signature count right. Confirm how many signatures the statute or bylaws require, and who is eligible to sign (owners of record).
• Use the association’s official records. A records request under § 33-1805 gets you the current owner roll and the bylaws, so your petition and notice go to the right people.
• Insist on proper notice and an open vote. The special meeting has to be noticed and conducted under Arizona’s open-meeting law (§ 33-1804). Keep the ballots and minutes.
• Watch the clock. If the board refuses to call the meeting within the statutory window, that refusal is itself a violation you can act on.

If the board stonewalls

If the board ignores a valid petition or won’t hold the meeting, homeowners can petition the Arizona Department of Real Estate (ADRE) for a hearing before an administrative law judge under A.R.S. § 32-2199.01 — see our ADRE petition walkthrough. Documenting the board’s refusal in writing first makes that case much stronger.

This is general information about Arizona law, not legal advice, and the exact thresholds and deadlines are set by the statute and your governing documents — read § 33-1813 (or § 33-1243) and your bylaws for the specifics. For a contested recall, consider talking with an Arizona HOA attorney.