Frankfort Trustee Hopefuls Withdraw Candidacies After Objections Filed

Frankfort IL

22 January, 2021

4:54 PM

Description

By Jon DePaolis, the Richard Free Press: FRANKFORT, Ill. — Frankfort residents will see just three names on the April 6 Consolidated Election ballot for the three open trustee positions after objections filed against two nominating petitions led to those candidates' withdrawals. The objections, both filed by trustee candidate Tamara Schaeffer on Dec. 29, alleged that the petitions for current Village Clerk Brian Feehery and newcomer Michael J. Leddin contained errors that would make some of the signatures collected invalid. Regarding Leddin's petition, Schaeffer claimed that: the candidate's name was not consistent on the candidacy statement and nomination papers; some signatures were from people living in Frankfort Square, which is not within the Village's boundaries; and that some signatures were of people who are not registered or legal voters at the addresses listed. In total, Schaeffer objected to 49 of the 143 signatures collected in Leddin's petition — which if upheld would have reduced Leddin's number to 94, or 13 below the statutory minimum of 107. Regarding Feehery's petition, Schaeffer claimed that: the nomination papers were not properly numbered, as required; the candidate's name was not consistently spelled on the nominating papers; some of the signatures were from people living in Frankfort Square while others were not registered or legal voters at the Frankfort addresses listed; and that one of the circulators of the petitions incorrectly certified sheets as saying she was Feehery. In total, Schaeffer objected to 76 of the 135 signatures collected in Feehery's petition — which if upheld would have reduced Feehery's number to 59, or 48 below the statutory minimum. On Jan. 5, Feehery submitted a Withdrawal of Candidacy form to the Village of Frankfort. A meeting of the Frankfort Municipal Officers Electoral Board was held Wednesday, Jan. 20, with the purpose of discussing the objection to Leddin's nominating petitions. The presiding board members at the meeting were Mayor Jim Holland and Village of Frankfort Trustees Keith Ogle and John Clavio. However, Leddin submitted a Withdrawal of Candidacy form earlier in the morning on Jan. 20 — meaning no action needed to be taken by the electoral board. With the withdrawal of the petitions by Leddin and Feehery, the three candidates for trustee who will appear on the April 6 ballot are Schaeffer, Daniel Rossi and current Trustee Eugene Savaria. However, the deadline for write-in candidates to file a Declaration of Intent form is Feb. 4. Leddin was reached by Richard Free Press later in the afternoon on Jan. 20. He said he was considering the write-in option but had not decided yet. "The most disappointing thing is that I feel two qualified candidates were eliminated for technical reasons, and thus it deprives the people of Frankfort the opportunity to go to the polls and choose the candidates who they think would be best for their trustee positions," Leddin said. "With what has developed, there is no opportunity for choice right now." Some residents who attended the electoral board meeting — which was held virtually, because of COVID-19 restrictions — also expressed that sentiment at the Jan. 20 meeting. Don Clark, one of a handful of residents who spoke during the public comment portion of the meeting, said he felt "very demoralized and disappointed that these types of political dynamics have infected even our local elections." "I'm frankly just disappointed and disheartened that our electoral process has been politicized to the extent that it doesn't really feel like a fair democratic process anymore," he said. An email to Feehery requesting a comment about the objection filed against his nominating petition was not returned as of presstime. Village Board members discuss financial impact of objections Prior to the electoral board meeting, several Village of Frankfort Board of Trustees members weighed in with their thoughts on the process at the Jan. 19 meeting. During a conversation about paying the Village's bills in the amount of $562,561.63, Savaria pointed out that $4,078.15 of the total was for legal fees to the Village's attorney, Mahoney, Silverman and Cross. "This expenditure was needed for legal services rendered to the Village for the recent election objection filed against two of the candidates," Savaria said. "Unfortunately, since this was as of [Dec. 31], I doubt this is the last of these that we will see." Clavio also commented on the issue. "I want to commend all of you [at the meeting], because we have worked very hard to maintain our finances, to be conservative, to not overspend — which is a key element for every taxpayer," Clavio said. "But there are times … where we are thrust into having to pay large expenses for items that are completely beyond our control. I think it is important that we call those out." Clavio said election objections are not things the Village can control. "And we have to defend it, and we have to spend large amounts of money," he said. With the meetings that have occurred since Dec. 31 regarding the objections, Clavio said he expected the total amount of legal fees related to that to be doubled. "I just personally think that is a shame, on behalf of our taxpayers," he said. Trustee Adam Borrelli also weighed in on the topic, stating he would be open to removing the item from the bills until the final total was set, so it would be easier for the public to locate for future reference. "It certainly is an outrage to me as a taxpayer," he said. "I think the other residents will agree when this is all settled." Trustee Jessica Petrow said she agreed with Borrelli's comments and wondered if the Village attorney would be open to waiting for payment for that item until it was finalized, "so that we have a complete picture of the bill." However, Holland said the Village has taken pride in paying its bills on time. "That's why we pay them twice a month, when some communities only pay them once a month," Holland said. "There are other ways that I think that we can make the cost stand out." Near the end of the discussion, Savaria said that as chairman of the Finance Committee, he could comment at a future meeting on what the total bill was once it was complete. After that, the payment of the bills was passed unanimously by a 6-0 vote. Get 30% off for 1 year Richard Free Press is a one-stop destination for the news that most affects you, the southwest suburban resident. 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