A group of Aurora residents is aiming to invalidate votes cast in the upcoming fall election on a recall mechanism that, if approved by voters, could allow residents to boot a sitting Aurora mayor from office.
The referendum question was approved to be placed on the ballot earlier this month by the Aurora Electoral Board. It’s set to ask voters if the city should adopt mechanisms that would allow a sitting mayor to be recalled.
But less than a week after the electoral board approved putting the measure on the ballot, the same residents who had previously opposed the recall measure filed a motion in Kane County Circuit Court to appeal the board’s decision.
While the referendum question is set to be on the ballot in November, the court’s ruling would affect if the votes on the measure are counted or not, said Edward Mullen, an attorney for Helen Francis Ratlow, who filed the appeal.
The case is scheduled for a hearing in Kane County Circuit Court on Thursday, Oct. 1, where the involved parties will decide on an expedited briefing and hearing schedule, according to online court records.
Mullen said he aims to receive a court ruling before the Nov. 3 election date.
The appeal would again argue the objections dismissed by the Aurora Electoral Board earlier this month, said Mullen.
Those objections include whether Aurora and its voters have the constitutional authority to create the proposed recall system, whether a recall election could be held on a date other than an election day already scheduled, whether the referendum combines separate questions and whether the referendum question is written so that the system could legally operate if voters do approve it.
Aurora Mayor John Laesch said he is involved with the effort to appeal the board’s decision but not that closely, he said.
Laesch said he and other people opposed to the recall referendum chose to support an appeal filed in court, rather than just run a campaign to vote “no” on the referendum question, because they feel the referendum could set a “dangerous” precedent that could undermine the democratic process, said Laesch.
“If it were to set precedent based only on an electoral board hearing, you could start to see more recall efforts,” he said.
The “dangerous” precedent set by the proposed recall mechanism, argued Laesch, could allow someone who loses an election to gather signatures and promote a recall effort, which he said undermines the votes that put the winning candidate in office.
More Top Picks Headlight Restoration
Laesch said this dynamic could start “perpetual campaigns” where elections become more expensive and favor wealthier candidates who have more money to spend on campaigning and promoting a recall campaign.
“It favors the deep-pocketed candidates who can survive multiple elections, or overturn elections, if they have the resources to do it,” he said. “It favors money over a more democratic system.”
He is also worried that an increase in elections caused by recalls could create voter fatigue, along with more work and financial costs for county clerks, electoral boards and electoral officials.
“Who knows where that money is going to come from,” Laesch said.
But leaders of the group backing the recall effort, Aurora for Change, argue that the recall referendum is about empowering people.
“If you believe that your elected leader has done something wrong, you have a form of recourse,” said Adam Pauley, one of the organizers behind Aurora for Change. “This is about people-powered government.”
Danny Souri, also an organizer behind Aurora for Change, said that under the proposed mechanism, if the elected mayor is doing their job, they should not have to worry about a recall.
Souri also said the recall process is difficult, as it requires a majority of the electorate to vote on removing the mayor. It’s not a new concept, he said, as Illinois has a mechanism to recall the governor.
“To get people to stand up, want to go through the whole process of a special election and kick someone out, et cetera, they’re going to have to really negate their duties as a sitting mayor,” he said.
Souri and Pauley said that appeals like the one now in Kane County Circuit Court are part of the process and that they are not worried.
“I just see it as a typical process. I mean it’s already been decided on, it’s been done through an unbiased attorney that was representing the council,” Souri said of the measure being approved to be on the fall ballot.
Since the Aurora Electoral Board approved the recall referendum to be on the Nov. 3 ballot, Souri and Pauley said Aurora for Change has taken several next steps to promote the measure. Souri said the group is organizing a town hall event that would include a presentation and opportunities to ask questions on Oct. 5. Souri said he would release more details about the event soon.
Souri also said the group has ordered yard signs that say “vote yes for your right to recall.”
Laesch said some residents have asked for leftover yard signs from his previous election campaign to display support for him during the recall referendum, even though the referendum question does not outright target Laesch, and he is not up for election.
However, some leaders of Aurora for Change, such as Souri, have called for Laesch to be removed from office.
Also opposing the recall referendum is Kane County Board member Mavis Bates of Aurora, who released statements on social media and in press releases last week asking residents to vote against the measure.
More Top Picks Best Abductor And Adductor Machines For Home Gyms
While the effort to appeal the electoral board’s recall referendum decision comes under a tight deadline ahead of the November election, the process itself is not without precedent.
A push to recall Dolton’s mayor made it on the ballot in 2022. The measure was approved by a majority of voters but was later struck down by an appellate court, which ruled that the referendum questions had been improperly drafted.
That case wasn’t the first time Dolton tried to put in place a recall mechanism. In 2016, the Village Board voted to create a recall ordinance, but it was also shot down by an appellate court, which said a recall mechanism needed to be established by referendum because it alters the terms of elected officials, according to earlier Daily Southtown reporting.
Aurora’s recall referendum measure is set to appear on election ballots for Aurora residents in Kane, DuPage, Will and Kendall counties. Early voting for those counties began Sept. 24.