Rockton Township billed for election petition challenge expenses

Local elections are being held on Tuesday April 1, 2025, including one for seats in Rockton Township. A hearing challenging three candidates cost the township more than $6,800.

Rockton resident Michael Nolan, who is is running for Township Supervisor on a Republican ticket, filed the challenges against his opponent, incumbent trustee Randy Johnson, and two other candidates.

This is Nolan's first time running for election in Rockton Township. He is chairman of the Rockton Township Republican Central Committee. A Republican caucus meeting selected Nolan, incumbent trustees Connie Gleasman and Gene Hermann, and first time candidates Michael Lindt and Clifford Jensen.

Trustee Vicki Ivy and candidate Ricarda Gomes are also running for trustee as independents. Also up for reelection are Township Assessor Dana Adams and Highway Commissioner Trent Kehoe.

Because of the caucus, no primary is being held for Rockton Township in the upcoming election. Voters will choose either Johnson or Nolan as supervisor, as well as four trustees, out of six candidates.

On December 3, 2024 a special electoral board meeting was held at the Rockton Township offices to review petitions of Ricarda Gomes, Vicki Ivy and Randy Johnson, all who are running as independents. Township Attorney Doug Henry assisted in running the hearing.

Generally the Electoral Board is made up of the Supervisor, the clerk, and the longest serving Trustee, per Illinois law. To avoid any conflict of interest during the hearing, with Johnson being a candidate, Gurney being related to Gomes, and Gomes' petition being challenged, Township Deputy Clerk Kristi Schaffer was appointed, per a judges approval, to serve instead of Gurney and Johnson. Supervisor Paul Williams joined Schaffer on the Electoral Board at the meeting.

At the electoral hearing, Michael Nolan claimed that neither Johnson or Ivy can now run as independents because they had pulled either a Democratic or Republican ballot in the November election. Nolan objected to Gomes’ candidacy because of an error on her paperwork.

Rockton Township Supervisor Paul Williams said, “We had to hold a hearing regarding this matter and it was ruled that they were each allowed to vote the way they chose, under the advice of the Township Attorney Doug Henry."

That is, all of Nolan's objections were overruled and the candidates will remain on the ballot. Nolan also unsuccessfully challenged two candidates for the Hononegah School Board.

During the regular December meeting of the Township, Doug Henry presented a bill for $3,204.50 for legal services rendered for the electoral board meeting. Henry gave Township Supervisor Paul Williams a second invoice at the January, 2025 meeting, for an additional $3,631.65, both bills totaling $6,836.15.

A FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) request resulted in a list of itemized charges for each bill.

Henry's bills covered phone calls and emails, the assembly of the Electoral Board hearing books, preparation for the hearings which included rules of procedure for the Electoral Board, and legal research memorandums.

Township Supervisor Paul Williams initially contacted Henry in late November about Electoral Board issues. An office conference was held with attorneys Tom Green and Darron Burke.

A notice of the hearing and objections were sent to Trustee Johnson, Trustee Ivy and candidate Gomes.

The attorneys also looked into whether members of an electoral board are automatically prevented from serving at an objection hearing on petitions they signed. They wrote a memorandum addressing Electoral Board members' potential conflict of interest was also taken into account.

The charges included correspondence with the Circuit Court's Chief Judge's Administrative Assistant and hiring a court reporter for the proceedings. Atty. Henry said in a phone interview, “It is very difficult to find a court reporter who is available to attend these hearings.”

Henry also reviewed a statute on the permitted time to appeal to the circuit court. Henry also reviewed the Circuit Court's website to see if Mr. Nolan had filed an appeal. To date no appeals have been filed.

Rockton Township holds regular monthly meetings the second Wednesday of each month, at the Rockton Township offices at 7 p.m. unless otherwise noted. Meetings are always open to the public.