A recall petition was filed for Mandeville Mayor Eddie Price. The Secretary of State’s office approved the application for the petition Monday.

A group of Mandeville citizens have 180 days to collect enough signatures to initiate a recall election. Old Mandeville resident Mike O’Connor is the chairman of the recall effort.

The group cites on its website state and federal investigations underway revolving around Mayor Price, specifically findings of a state audit alleging price has used city funds for personal use and accepted gifts from contractors.

Price has been under public scrutiny after a state legislative audit was released last week that said state employees, including Price, routinely used city vehicles and Fuelman cards for personal purposes, such as out-of-state vacations.

There is a Mandeville City Charter that says a group filing a recall petition needs signatures from 25 percent of registered voters, but, the Secretary of State's Office said state law trumps that, meaning the group seeking this recall petition must get 2,664 signatures from registered voters -- that's 33.3 percent of the 7,992 registered voters in the City of Mandeville.

"They can offer a recall opinion, or not,” said Mayor Eddie Price. “My voice to Mandeville is look at my 27 years of service and the good I've done, while you consider some of the negative things that have happened. And I'd also say there are other parties investigating what is going on in Mandeville. Before you sign anything, let's let those investigations become complete."

Mayor Price also said that while the investigations triggered by the audit have been a minor distraction, he and his office continue to stay focused and are working on changing some of the policies they have on the books pointed out by the audit.

"The more anger and frustration there is among voters, the greater likelihood that people are willing to sign a recall petition," said Eyewitness News political analyst Clancy Dubos, on the likelihood of a successful recall petition. "The other factor is how organized the people are promoting the recall."

Following that auditor's report, the state Attorney General's Office opened an investigation into the City of Mandeville.

“These are very serious allegations,” Gov. Jindal said on Aug. 13.  “I hope the council takes them seriously.  These aren’t minor infractions, and there is an accumulation of several infractions here.” Jindal added that he wants to let the federal investigation to play itself out as the story grows.

That audit came months after Mayor Eddie Price smashed through an arm of a toll gate at the Causeway. Responding officers let him go at the scene. As a result of that incident, the Causeway Police Chief Felix Loicano resigned and three other officers were fired.

That was the second incident in which Price was caught drinking and driving, though the first, which happened in 2006, did not come into the public’s eye until earlier this year.

Price has given up his city-owned SUV and is going through a 13-week counseling program.

The group of citizens who initiated this recall petition against Mayor Price would not speak with Eyewitness News on Monday.