City of Highland Park Electoral Board Met Dec. 15.
Here is the minutes provided by the board:
Call to Order
At 1:00 PM, Chair Rotering called the public hearing to order and asked for a roll call:
PRESENT: Chair Rotering, Member Kaufman, Clerk Neukirch
ABSENT: None
OBJECTOR: Objector Forest Barbieri
PETITIONER: Candidate Jami Bay
ALSO PRESENT: Court Reporter Crystal Alexander, Deputy Corporation Counsel Passman, Assistant Corporation Counsel Lynch, Deputy City Clerk Palbitska
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Public Hearing of the Electoral Board – December 7, 2020
Member Kaufman moved to approve the minutes from the Public Hearing of the Electoral Board held on December 7, 2020. Clerk Neukirch seconded the motion.
On a roll call vote:
Voting Yea: Chair Rotering, Member Kaufman, Clerk Neukirch
Voting Nay: None
Mayor Rotering declared the motion passed unanimously.
SCHEDULE BUSINESS
1. Barbieri v. Wilhelmsen, Case No. 20 MOEB 01: Acknowledgment of Candidate Withdrawal and Final Decision
Chair Rotering noted that Candidate Wilhelmsen filed a Withdrawal of Candidacy with the City Clerk and in light of that withdrawal, the matter was moot.
Member Kaufman move to approve the proposed final decision in Case No. 20 MOEB 01, as presented. Clerk Neukirch seconded the motion. Upon a roll call vote, the Chair declared the motion passed unanimously.
2. Barbieri v. Bay, Case No. 20 MOEB 02
Deputy Corporation Counsel Passman noted there was communication that was received by an individual that was not a party to these proceedings and that, in accordance with its Rules of Procedure, the Electoral Board was not to accept the communication as evidence in the pending proceedings. a. Hearing on Candidate’s Motion to Strike and Dismiss Candidate Bay noted that most of his points were covered in his motion and he would attempt to be brief. He provided three reasons as to why he believes the objection to be dismissed: 1) the petition was not dated by the Objector and therefore should be stricken; 2) the sole allegation was that a receipt of his filing of the Statement of Economic Interests was not filed with the City Clerk, but that in fact a receipt was filed as part of the petition packet paperwork; and 3) the Objector raises the inference that a Statement of Economic Interests must be filed in relation to the candidacy, but yet there are no allegations related to this issue. He requested, based on the information he has presented today and within his motion, that the Electoral Board dismiss or strike the Objector’s petition.
Member Kaufman asked Candidate Bay if he could confirm it was indeed his signature affixed to the motion and verification.
Candidate Bay confirmed that it was his signature.
Deputy Corporation Counsel Passman clarified that Member Kaufman was referring to the copy of the motion that was included in the agenda packet.
Clerk Neukirch noted that she did not have any questions at this time.
Objector Barbieri addressed concerns regarding the objection not being properly dated and stated that when the document is received by the Clerk, a date stamp is then applied to the document to record the date it was received. He provided testimony as to why he believed the receipt would be invalid. He voiced his opinion on why he believes Candidate Bay to be ineligible for consideration on the 2021 ballot.
He discussed the term “inadvertently” and provided examples of “inadvertently” doing things in his day-to-day tasks. He opined on the importance of completing the paperwork in a precise manner and requested that the motion for dismissal be rejected.
Chair Rotering noted that Candidate Bay serves as a Commissioner on the City’s Zoning Board of Appeals and filed a Statement of Economic Interests (SEI) in connection with that role that was filed with the County of Lake, State and City of Highland Park. She asked whether Candidate Bay was required to file a new SEI in connection with his candidacy for elected office, or if his prior filing of an SEI in connection with his service on the ZBA was sufficient.
Deputy Corporation Counsel Passman stated that his office would have to research that question. He noted that he was not sure if Candidate Bay indeed filed a subsequent SEI for his candidacy or used what was filed previously.
Candidate Bay noted that he filed his first Statement in May for his service on the Zoning Board of Appeals. He discussed the process he followed for filing the Statement of Economic Interests in regards to the petitioner packet he was filing on the last day in the filing period.
Clerk Neukirch asked for confirmation from Deputy Corporation Counsel Passman regarding the obligations of the City in regards to the verbiage on the receipt for filing petition packets and is the extent of the City Clerk’s responsibility to only affirm that a 2020 SEI receipt has been filed, not the content of the SEI.
Deputy Corporation Counsel Passman stated that was correct as a normal practice. He explained that the Local Election Authority does not do anything in terms of checking what is filed elsewhere, the obligation is to confirm what is filed with the City Clerk as the Local Election Authority is correct. He stated that the Local Election Authority does not then check what the candidate has or has not said or filed in substance with any other body that may or may not be involved.
Member Kaufman asked Objector Barbieri if he had any comments on the cases that were cited in Candidate Bay’s Motion to Strike and Dismiss.
Objector Barbieri noted that he filed this objection as a private citizen.
He explained that he reviewed the packets, found errors and pointed those out in his objections. He noted that the prior SEI completed by Candidate Bay was for an appointed office and not an elected office. He opined on how Candidate Bay objects to dating but doesn’t object to filling out the paperwork incorrectly. He noted that he could not speak to the case law because he was not an attorney.
Candidate Bay noted that he finds it to be contradictory that someone who raises an objection based upon a certain case then says they are incapable of addressing those cases that overturn the case that was cited. He discussed the sole allegation and reiterated that he did complete the SEI form and that the receipt was filed with the petition packet. He provided information related to his review of the other candidates’ filings and how the other SEI paperwork simply stated City of Highland Park, not Councilman.
Objector Barbieri opined on how Candidate Bay just said that if he were to redo it, he would properly fill out the form. He voiced his concerns with Candidate Bay inadvertently making a mistake on his SEI filing.
Chair Rotering noted statements regarding the Motion to Strike and Dismiss have been made. She asked the members of the Board if they would like continue the discussion regarding the objection, take action, or take the previous arguments under advisement.
Member Kaufman suggested that the Board take the Motion to Strike and Dismiss under advisement and proceed with allowing the Objector to present his case and allow Candidate Bay to respond.
Clerk Neukirch was in consensus with Member Kaufman’s recommendation.
Deputy Corporation Counsel Passman noted that was a good way to move forward and recommended hearing the case in chief regarding the objection itself and then move forward from there.
Chair Rotering noted that the Board will proceed to the objection hearing.
b. Merits Hearing
Objector Barbieri provided testimony as to how Candidate Bay incorrectly filed his SEI form with the position of Lake County, which is not a position at all. He discussed the importance of the position of Councilman and voiced his concern about Candidate Bay’s understanding and accountability of his error. He requested the Board to properly evaluate the facts and execute their duty in the manner of fairness to the other Candidates and the community.
Candidate Bay noted that most of what is involved with this case has been set forth. He stated that his SEI was filled out, signed, dated and submitted on time. He recognized his mistake but noted that it was an inadvertent mistake. He stated that he was not avoiding responsibility by saying he inadvertently put down Lake County because that is the unit of government that the form was being filed with. He noted that it is very clear, it is not that he did not fill out the form correctly, the objection is that he did not file a receipt, which clearly was completed. He stated that he should be allowed to be on the ballot and let the community decide if he has the capacity to serve as a Councilman.
Chair Rotering asked Member Kaufman and Clerk Neukirch if there was any additional information that was needed prior to coming to a conclusion.
Member Kaufman indicated that he did not need any more information.
Clerk Neukirch indicated she did not need any more information.
Deputy Corporation Counsel Passman noted for the record that the Candidate’s nominating papers and the Objector’s objection petition, and copies of the Candidate’s SEIs, had been previously provided to the Electoral Board, Objector, and Candidate via e-mail. He asked the Objector and Candidate for their understanding of the purpose of the Statement of Economic Interests, and whether they believe that the other filings by Candidate Bay make clear what position he was filing for.
Objector Barbieri provided his opinion as to the purpose of the SEI.
He also stated that the other documents filed by the Candidate were correctly filled in and indicated that he was seeking election to the office of City Councilman in the April 2021 election.
Candidate Bay provided his opinion as to the purpose of the SEI. He stated that that the rest of the documents within his petition packet clearly indicate he was running for City Councilman and Objector Barbieri admitted as such. He discussed how the emailed documents from the Objector was in fact the SEI filing from May.
Chair Rotering asked Member Kaufman and Clerk Neukirch how they wished to proceed with deliberation.
At the request of the Electoral Board, Deputy Corporation Counsel Passman provided a brief summary of the cited case law from both the petition and motion.
The Board, Candidate and Objector indicated they did not have anything to add or any questions after the summary was provided by
Deputy Corporation Counsel Passman.
Member Kaufman voiced his appreciation of the civility of the Candidate and Objector and explained that based on the case law that was reviewed and the comments that have been heard, if there was a mistake, it was an inadvertent mistake. He stated that it does not seem appropriate to remove Candidate Bay from the ballot.
Clerk Neukirch thanked Objector Barbieri for bringing forward the objection. She stated that upon review of all of the information and guidance from Corporation Counsel, Candidate Bay has complied with the requirements that the City is obligated to adhere to and she could not find anything to lead her to believe that Candidate Bay’s name should be removed from the petition.
Chair Rotering echoed the comments of the members of the Board and voiced her appreciation of the civility in which these questions have been raised and answered. She stated that the SEI receipt has been received, there is a copy of that available with the initials of the Clerk and the time added to that. She concurs that removal from the ballot does not meet the errors that have been made, if any.
Chair Rotering sought a motion to draft a final order for adoption for the Electoral Board to take action on December 18, 2020, permitting Candidate Bay to remain on the ballot.
Member Kaufman moved to direct Corporation Counsel to draft a final order granting the motion, dismissing the objection, and allowing Candidate Bay to remain on the ballot. Clerk Neukirch seconded the motion. Upon a roll call vote, the Chair declared the motion passed unanimously.
3. Public Comments
There were none.
ADJOURNMENT
Chair Rotering entertained a motion to adjourn. Member Kaufman moved to adjourn the Public Hearing. Clerk Neukirch seconded the motion. Upon a roll call vote, Chair Rotering declare the motion passed unanimously.
The Public Hearing was adjourned at 1:45 PM.
http://highlandparkil.iqm2.com/Citizens/FileOpen.aspx?Type=12&ID=2455&Inline=True
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