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Target of recall surprised to keep seat on council Central Point's Gilmour notes that movement's leader lives in his ward By SARA MURPHY CENTRAL POINT -- Councilman Dave Gilmour says he's pleased with his narrow victory in Tuesday's recall election -- especially since he expected to lose his council seat. "I was lucky and happy that I was able to prevail," said Gilmour, who defied recall along with fellow council member Donna Higginbotham and Mayor Bill Walton. Just under half of the voters wanted to recall the Central Point physician, the narrowest margin of survival among the three. Official totals reported by the Jackson County Clerk's Office parallel preliminary results reported early this week. Some 3,310 Central Point residents voted in the special mail-in election. Gilmour survived recall by receiving 403 votes against the recall, or just over 54 percent. Voting for the recall were 336 voters in his ward. Higginbotham received the most support, or 64 percent. Some 575 voters in her ward marked no on their ballots; 319 yes. In the citywide vote, Walton received the support of 2,044 voters, or nearly 62 percent, while 1,261 voted to recall the mayor. Gilmour said he wasn't surprised at the close margin. He noted that chief petitioner Larry Thornton, and outspoken critic and former Mayor Rusty McGrath live in his downtown ward. "They really targeted me," Gilmour said. "I thought I was going to have a hard time, and didn't know if I would be voted back in because of the ward I live in." Gilmour said he's not sure what if anything he can do to improve his relationship with the 45 percent of voters who wanted him out of office. "I have no idea what their agenda is," he says. "It's displaced anger. There's no way of placating a group that can't articulate what they're for and against. It can't be done." Gilmour says he now regrets not sending the city's controversial anti-smoking ordinance to the voters, but believes the recall was inevitable. "It was going to happen, regardless of whether we had the smoking ordinance or not," he says. "There was going to be a catalyst sometime." Today's Edition : News | Sports | Business | Weather | Tempo | Classifieds Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA