The Homer Glen Board of Elections decided Tuesday that seven trustee candidates didn’t submit correct documentation to seem on the poll for the spring election, whereas two trustee candidates had greater than sufficient signatures to compete for 3 positions up for grabs.
The board, made up of Mayor Christina Neitzke-Troike, Chancellor Candice Bielski and Trustee Sue Steilen, didn’t rule on all objections to the candidates’ petitions and continued the listening to till Dec. 9.
But the board eliminated incumbent trustee Jennifer Trzos-Consolino, John Walters, Theresa “Tammy” Hayes and James J. Roti as a result of they filed for each Homer Glen trustee and a college board race, and are unable to run for each positions.
Daniel Gutierrez didn’t have sufficient signatures as soon as duplicate signatures had been eliminated and was faraway from the poll, and the board decided that Cesar E. Marin and Ethan D. Fialko wouldn’t present as a result of they didn’t embody their right house addresses on their petitions .
Trzos-Consolino has filed to run for Homer Elementary School District 33C, Walters has filed for Will County Elementary District 92 and Hayes and Roti have filed for Lockport School District 205.
Pericles Abbasi, an lawyer for Craig Carlson who opposed 14 petitions, stated candidates can not run for 2 incompatible places of work on the identical time and that state legislation has established that the college board and metropolis council are incompatible. The deadline to withdraw from both race was Monday, and not one of the candidates did so, he stated.
“If you have a look at the lawyer normal’s web site, it states {that a} village trustee and a college board member are incompatible positions,” Neitkze-Troike stated. “It is my opinion that reference is all the time made to the state statute. I can not overturn the state statute.”
Michael Carroll, an lawyer for the elections board, stated the candidates would have been mechanically faraway from each places of work by the Will County Clerk’s Office and the Illinois State Election Board if the Homer Glen Election Board had not eliminated the their names.
Trzos-Consolino stated she acquired data from the county clerk’s workplace that she may apply for each places of work.
Roti stated he would not imagine the 2 elected places of work are incompatible and stated he’ll ask a Will County choose to intervene. He believes the election listening to was a farce based mostly on native politics and needs to be eliminated as a result of he isn’t a part of the “mayor’s circles.”
Marin used a Homer Glen handle that she as soon as shared together with her associate, however she hadn’t lived there for a couple of 12 months and was dwelling together with her dad and mom in Orland Park, the board stated. His lawyer, Alan Bruggeman, argued that Marin closed on his new house in Homer Glen on Tuesday, has authorized paperwork along with his former Homer Glen handle on them and intends to have a everlasting residence within the metropolis.
But Abbasi stated the legislation is obvious: Candidates should have everlasting residency established for one 12 months earlier than the election.
Fialko, who’s the son of Homer Glen trustee Dan Fialko, included in his nominating petitions the handle of the UPS retailer on Bell Road, which Dan Fialko stated he makes use of for enterprise functions. Ethan Fialko has lived in Homer Glen his total life, his father stated.
Dan Fialko, who is just not operating for re-election, recused himself as a member of the elections board earlier this month as a result of his son’s title was on the poll. He stated he had signed petitions for different candidates and did not need it to seem like a battle of curiosity.
Carroll stated the difficulty is not whether or not Ethan Fialko lives in Homer Glen, however whether or not he improperly used the UPS retailer in his nomination papers.
Walters stated he did not suppose it was a good listening to as a result of the election board members confirmed up collectively two years in the past on one slate. He stated the listening to was “a waste of time.”
Neitzke-Troike stated he has no battle of curiosity as a result of his title is just not on the poll and he has no monetary curiosity within the election, which by legislation would represent a battle.
In all, 17 candidates filed to run for 3 Homer Glen trustee positions, and petitions had been challenged for all besides incumbent Rose Reynders and former trustee Michael LePore, the clerk’s workplace stated by Homer Glen.
The Election Commission dominated 3-0 that each Nicholas S. Muller and Richard J. Modelski had ample and legitimate signatures though the signatures in query had been expunged from their petitions. The two will stay on the poll.
The elections board plans to listen to objections Dec. 9 to petitions from former trustees Ruben L. Pazmino, Heidi “Hadley” Pacella, Kevin Koukol, John Hayes, Katie Surges and Kyle Surges.
Carlson, who has opposed 14 petitions, stated earlier this month that he believed it was in the neighborhood’s greatest curiosity to contest them. The giant quantity of people that signed 4 or extra petitions demonstrates a sample of fraud, he stated.
Because there are solely three trustee positions up for election, residents can solely signal three petition paperwork, Carlson stated.
“In my opinion, I do not suppose they’re all critical about operating for trustee and serving our group,” Carlson stated. “I imagine they’re making an attempt to make a mockery of the method and produce chaos to the election.”
He additionally stated that they’re all mates, evident by the truth that they signed one another’s petitions.
“They do not wish to crash into one another,” he stated. “They simply wish to create disruption by forcing primaries in February, that are vital if there are 13 or extra candidates.
Because the sphere of candidates is now fewer than 13, primaries is not going to be vital for Homer Glen trustee positions except a courtroom motion overturns the elections board’s selections.
Roti stated there is no such thing as a must worry the variety of candidates who’ve utilized to run.
“There are actually 17 folks in the neighborhood operating for 3 positions, which is unbelievable,” Roti stated. “I believe this needs to be embraced. … We ought to by no means discourage anybody from operating for public workplace.”
The Republican main for Homer Township places of work will nonetheless be held as two Republican slates have been filed.
Michelle Mullins is a contract reporter for the Daily Southtown.
