LITTLETON, Colo. -- An effort to recall Arapahoe County Clerk and Recorder Tracy Baker is about 4,000 signatures short with just 12 days left before the deadline.

Organizers of the recall effort said they have gathered 30,000 signatures so far and will work to get the remaining 4,000 required to put the recall issue on the November ballot.

Baker (pictured, left) 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.

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.

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.

The petition to recall Baker 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?"