Attorney Tom DeVore is taking the Town of Normal to court on behalf of three candidates who turned in petition packets to run for offices they believe state law requires the town to have. He has filed a complaint asking for a restraining order directing Normal Town Clerk Angie Huonker to certify both the nominating papers and the names of the candidates appearing on the ballot.
“What I filed is a cause of action,” DeVore told Cities 92.9 in a live on air interview. “It is called mandamus. What it means in English is that an elected official has a duty that is not discriminatory. It is compulsory that they have to do something that the law puts on them.”
“So in this case you have got this state law that says any incorporated town with a population of over 25,000. It says every incorporated town over 25,000. There’s only two, Cicero and Normal, that fit that. And it says that you shall elect these positions in conformity with the election law.
The positions are president, clerk, collector and supervisor. President equates to mayor, which Normal elects. Normal appoints their Clerk instead of electing a clerk. Collector equates to finance director and supervisor equates to city manager. Normal does not recognize the positions of collector or supervisor.
The Town of Normal argues the offices of collector and supervisor don’t exist in the town and that the clerk is appointed according to Normal Municipal Code.
DeVore said, “Their local municipal code is contrary and contradicts the state law. And the law of Illinois says that state law controls.”
“So when the town clerk that you have said ‘well your nominating petitions don’t conform to the legal requirements,’ what they are trying to say is that our local municipal code, you don’t comply with that, so we are not going to recognize your petition,” Devore added.
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DeVore’s court filings result from an abrupt end to a Normal Electoral Board hearing that while in recess simply did not reconvene. On December 27 the town notified the candidates that it would not be proceeding with the hearing but instead was going to rely on letters sent to the candidates on December 2nd that stated their papers were not in conformity with town code.
The candidates are: Robert Shoraga, who is running for Town Supervisor; Charles Sila, who is running for Town Collector and Amy Conklin, who is running for Town Clerk.
McLean County Circuit Court Judge Mark Fellheimer has been assigned the case. A virtual status hearing on Zoom is scheduled for Wednesday at 10:30.
