Last night an effort to replace Harvey Godwin as the chairman of the Lumbee Tribal Government continued with those seeking change trying to get possession of the tribal voting rolls, apparently to find enough signatures to pass the first hurdle that is required by the constitution for recall.

That the rolls are needed suggests the effort is having trouble gaining traction.

We hope so.

Our position is based largely on this reality: This newspaper’s editorial leadership has dealt with every tribal chairman in the history of that government, and we would put Godwin near or at the top when it comes to truthfulness and accessibility, two things we demand of all elected officials. That is why we take him at his word when he denies having anything to do with having a staff writer for The Robesonian removed Tuesday night from The Turtle.

But it should be left entirely to the Lumbee people to make a determination of Godwin’s effectiveness, and should they decide that he is not up for the task, then the constitution provides a mechanism for his removal.

But let’s be honest about what is happening here: The folks who are pushing the recall effort are remnants of the Paul Brooks regime, including the king himself, who were rejected overwhelming in the November 2015 tribal election. You may not remember but Godwin was able to separate himself in a five-person race, garnering almost 42 percent of the vote — and 700-plus more than Brooks received with only about 5,500 ballots cast.

We will add that of all the tribal governments that this newspaper has dealt with, none was less accessible or more dishonest with us than the one Brooks led. We believe the November 2015 election was a repudiation of that regime.

The recall group has made serious allegations against Godwin and should they be found to be true, a remedy would be required, up to and perhaps including recall. We are skeptical because we know the character of the accusers.

The mistake that Godwin has made has been in trimming the current government, freeing up housing dollars for their true purpose, and not for fat salaries for people who spend all day twiddling their thumbs. Among the casualties was Boscoe Locklear, the longtime housing director, who has now partnered with Brooks in the effort to roll back the clock and invalidate the 2015 election results.

Godwin has tried to carry a big stick while walking softly, a difficult balancing act. He knows that when he puts someone like Locklear out of work, that he risks mobilizing those who have supported Locklear, who also served multiple terms on the Board of Education for the Public Schools of Robeson County before he got booted because of his role in the 2015 superintendent search debacle.

Godwin has demonstrated that he prefers housing dollars to go directly to benefit tribal members — and currently is leading an ambitious effort to build 100 housing units, 50 in Lumberton and the rest scattered throughout the county. He also had the good sense to hire Freda Porter as tribal administrator, whose credentials cannot be questioned.

We don’t know where the recall effort will end, and the petitioners have a high bar to clear, which is why they need those tribal rolls. In the end, it will be the Lumbee people who pick their chairman — not a group of disgruntled retreads with obvious axes to grind.

We take comfort knowing that.