AURORA, Colo. -- A committee on Thursday launched a 60-day effort to collect the 34,603 signatures needed to recall embattled Arapahoe County Clerk Tracy Baker. A recall petition was approved by the county assessor on Thursday.

Baker was accused of misusing county money because of an affair he was having with an employee in his office. He was cleared of any criminal wrongdoing but has refused repeated calls to resign.

Last week, county commissioners withdrew a deal to pay Baker $325,000 to step down. Commissioners rejected the plan after Baker asked for a week to consider it because he wanted his attorney to look over some contract changes.

Four current or former employees have sued the county, claiming Baker created a hostile work environment and sexually harassed and discriminated against employees. The most recent complaint was made Aug. 1.

The lawsuits could cost the county millions of dollars, said Commissioner Debra Vickrey.

An outside investigator hired by the commissioners turned up 570 romantic or sexually explicit e-mails exchanged between Baker and Deputy Clerk Leesa Sale, with whom he was having an affair. Most were written during working hours using county computers.

His colleagues within the state Republican Party have also asked him to step down. Baker, however, said that if he must leave office, it should be by the will of the voters rather than by a select group of Republicans.

On Thursday, the head of the Colorado Republican Party reiterated the group's desire for Baker to resign.

"As painful and regrettable as it is to take this action against a public official who is a member of one's own party, it nonetheless must be made unmistakably clear that the Colorado GOP does not condone but instead condemns Mr. Baker's conduct in public office," said Ted Halaby, the chairman of the Colorado Republican Party.

The state law requires a minimum six-month waiting period after the last election before a recall can be initiated. Baker was re-elected in November, one month after the scandal broke.

The petition that was approved on Thursday reads:

"Shall Arapahoe County Clerk And Recorder, Tracy K. Baker, Be Removed From Office Because He Has Consistently Demonstrated Gross Mismanagement Of The Office, Misuse Of Taxpayer Dollars, Outrageous, Embarrassing And Hostile Conduct In The Workplace By His Willful Disregard For State And Federal Laws Protecting Employees From Workplace Harassment Including Sexual Harassment?"

The Arapahoe County assessor also approved the first of what could be several petitions nominating candidates to replace Baker if he is recalled. Nancy A. Doty, a Republican from Centennial and currently the chief fiscal officer to Gov. Bill Owens, was nominated. She must gather 4,439 signatures to get her name on the ballot.