REHOBOTH — A request to reconsider modifying the town’s recall ordinance failed at last night’s fourth and final night of the Annual Town Meeting.

On night three last week, voters contentiously debated changes that Board of Selectmen Chairman Christopher P. Morra — who faced and defeated a recall twice in the last year — and others recommended. Several opposers said they believed the suggested amendments stripped them of their rights, while the supporters said the changes only clarified an ordinance that residents abused and, most recently, didn’t follow.

“Think of what it did with the town the last time and what it will do in the future,” Kenneth J. Foley, the newest member of the selectmen, said last night, while also stating those who tried to recall Morra did it only because they disagreed with him politically.

He said the ordinance was not intended to resolve political differences. It was rather enacted to throw out elected officials who violated the law.

Foley continued, “…We’re not taking the rights away from anyone, we’re just making it more difficult.”

In the proposed ordinance revision, 12 registered voters (four from each of Rehoboth’s three precincts) must file an affidavit requesting a recall with the town clerk. In another change, it proposed that those 12 would then be the only ones to collect signatures from registered voters to force the recall.

The existing ordinance calls for one person to file the affidavit with the town clerk. It also does not limit how many people can collect signatures.

Another change in the proposed revision would modify how many signatures from registered voters had to be collected to force a recall. The current ordinance calls for 15 percent from each precinct; the failed revision called for 20 percent.

In addition, Morra and others who worked on the ordinance revision agreed that 30 percent of the town’s registered voters hold have to vote in the recall election and two-thirds of them should have to vote in favor of the recall for it to occur. A simple majority is the current rule.

And still another alteration would have made it impossible to try to recall the same elected official twice in his or her term if the first recall attempt failed.

“What we are witnessing is a demise of democracy,” resident John Scanlon said last week. “The recall process works. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

After a voice vote last week, the moderator ruled the majority didn’t agree to the changes. A hand count was not performed and residents did not ask for it to be reconsidered during the meeting.

Yet nine voters filed for reconsideration within 48 hours of the conclusion of last week’s meeting, which is permitted. Two-thirds of those in attendance last night had to agree to reconsider; however, only 58 percent, or 200 of the 347 voters, concurred.

Finance Committee member Gerald Schwall, who ran against Morra in the recall, repeated immediately after the vote, “Democracy prevails.”

Morra said, “If we had done the hand vote last week, it would have been moot because we had the numbers.”

apina@projo.com