The Past Always Comes Knocking: Why Michael Todd’s “Family Troubles” Matter in the Liberty School Recall

Arizona voters have short memories, but sometimes, the past doesn’t stay buried for long. Take Michael Todd, now a familiar name again as the embattled board president of Liberty Elementary School District. The same man who’s facing a recall effort from furious parents and educators today is the very same Michael Todd whose “family troubles” dominated front pages back in 2008, when he was running for mayor of Buckeye.

At the time, Todd was a self-proclaimed “family man” who admitted to spanking his 10-year-old stepdaughter with a belt hard enough to leave marks and slapping his infant daughter after she bit him while he was half asleep. He told the Arizona Republic that the belt “slipped” and that these incidents didn’t make him unfit for leadership. His wife filed for a restraining order, citing repeated domestic altercations and police involvement, only to later walk it back once his campaign came under fire.

He wanted voters to “move on.” Now, almost twenty years later, it looks like the voters of Liberty Elementary aren’t so willing to oblige.

The recall campaign brewing in Liberty is about accountability, integrity, and leadership, but it’s also about patterns. Todd’s leadership style has been described by staff and parents as hostile, retaliatory, and unstable. Teachers have left the district in droves. Parents have accused the board of stonewalling, intimidation, and backroom decision-making. Sound familiar? It should. The same temperament that once made headlines for explosive behavior at home has now reared its head in a public school system, and the community is saying “enough.”

Todd’s defenders claim this recall is politically motivated. But if you look closer, it’s about something much deeper: character. The man’s public record from his personal conduct in Buckeye to his combative behavior in Liberty, tells a consistent story. Leadership isn’t just about policy votes or budgets; it’s about how someone treats the people around them when they hold power.

In 2008, Todd brushed off concerns about his fitness to lead, insisting his “personal struggles” didn’t reflect his professional judgment. Today, as teachers flee and parents demand his removal, that same dismissal is on full display. History isn’t repeating, it’s just catching up.

Can someone who once justified violence in the home be trusted to foster safety, transparency, and trust in our schools? Can someone who spent years dodging accountability suddenly be expected to model it for our children?

For years, Todd has relied on short memories and second chances. But in Buckeye, voters passed. In Liberty, it looks like they’re ready to do the same.

Because at the end of the day, “family values” aren’t something you print on a campaign flyer. They’re something you live by, and Michael Todd’s record speaks for itself.