More than two months after primary candidate petition filings were due, newcomer candidates are still finding themselves in the crosshairs of seasoned politicians. On January 26th Adam Rusch, an Urbana City Council candidate who is running as a Libertarian in Ward 1, received a letter from City Clerk Phyllis Clark indicating that he was not eligible to be a candidate in the April 6th election.
Clark’s letter (full PDF here):
“Dear Mr. Rusch:
I am writing to inform you that you are not eligible to be a candidate in the April 6, 2021 Consolidated Election.
It has been brought to my attention by the State Board of Elections and the Champaign County Clerk that the Libertarian Party is not an established party as it relates to the Municipal Election, thus rendering you ineligible to be a candidate for Ward 1 in the April 6, 2021 Consolidated Election.
My sincere apology for any inconvenience this may cause you.
Sincerely,
Phyllis D. Clark
City Clerk”
This came as a great surprise to Rusch, who submitted his candidate petition to Clark’s office on November 23rd of 2020. The last day for any person to object to that petition was December 2nd, and no one objected to Mr. Rusch’s candidacy.
In addition to his petition for candidacy, on November 23rd Rusch sent letters to Urbana City Clerk Phyllis Clark, and Champaign County Clerk Aaron Ammons. The letters explained that the Libertarian Party attained Established Party Status in the Illinois House of Representatives District 103, and that Urbana Ward 1 resided entirely within District 103. Rusch cited the section of the Illinois Election Code which indicates how a political party attains “established political party” status and explained how the Libertarian Party qualified.
It is not clear exactly what sequence of events led to Phyllis Clark’s decision to send her ineligibility letter, or what authority Clark has to take any action at all in this matter. Clark seems to indicate that she received notice from the County Clerk, but as of January 31st, Adam Rusch is still listed as a candidate on the Champaign County Clerk “Meet the Candidates” page under the April 6th Consolidated General Election.
Check CU contacted Mr. Rusch, who gave the following statement:
“Before filing to run for Urbana Ward 1 Alderman I reached out to Champaign County Clerk Aaron Ammons to make sure he had everything he needed to certify the Libertarians as an Established Party. He told me that he would look into the matter and let me know if there were any problems. After I submitted my Established Party application on November 23, there was a 5 business day window for objections to be made. Nobody questioned my Established Party status at that time. If the Election Board had ruled that I was ineligible to run it would have meant I still had time to submit a New Party application by December 21. Waiting until January 25 to reject my application is a disenfranchisement of the voters who signed my Nominating Petition and I will be seeking legal recourse to get back on the ballot.”
This new attempt at denying ballot access is the fourth in the ongoing Champaign-Urbana election period. Verdell Jones was kicked off the ballot for Urbana Mayor by an objection from a Diane Marlin donor. Meghan McDonald, running for Urbana City Council in Ward 5, successfully defended a rather petty objection from the current Cunningham Township Assessor Wayne Williams. In Champaign, Justin Hendrix was removed from the ballot after an objection from a prior Champaign City Attorney.
The removal of Adam Rusch from the ballot is, in a way, quite a bit more unsettling, since no formal objection was filed. Simply removing a candidate from the ballot without a hearing or trial would seem to be a flagrant violation of due process.
Rusch has served the people of Urbana since 2015 when he volunteered to be a member of the Green Street Corridor Mixed Office Residential Development Review Board. He now serves as Vice Chair of the Urbana Design Review Board and he is also a member of the Zoning Board of Appeals. Rusch said the move to deny him ballot access will not affect his dedication to City service:
“While I’m disappointed that established players within the political system are using ambiguity in the election code to keep me off the ballot, my desire to see Urbana grow into a more vibrant community with opportunities for all its citizens has not changed. I have no plans to resign from my city board positions and will continue to push for a future where everyone is treated fairly.”
Check CU also requested additional information from the Urbana City Clerk and the Champaign County Clerk, but after four days has not received a response. An update will be posted if and when new information comes to light.
Ms. McDonald did hold her ground. The objection was petty. The hearing officer reinforced as much when she asked the objector’s attorney to identify other case law, which he was not prepared to do, before poignantly citing her own. Here now with this news is the ISBE 2021 Candidate Guide’s suggestion of a living absurdity betwixt and between clerical subdivisions of Champaign County and City of Urbana.