Neely v. The Board of Election Commisioners for the City of Chicago

              SIXTH DIVISION
February 16, 2007
No. 1-07-0309
DAVID E. NEELY, the Candidate for ) Appeal from the
Alderman of the 20th Ward in the City ) Circuit Court of
of Chicago, ) Cook County
)
Petitioner-Appellant, )
)
v. )
)
THE BOARD OF ELECTION COMMISSIONERS FOR )
THE CITY OF CHICAGO; LANGDON NEAL and )
RICHARD COWEN, as Members of the Board )
of Election Commissioners for the City )
of Chicago; IRIS L. HEARD and JERMAINE )
SHEPPARD, as Objectors. ) Honorable
) Susan Fox Gillis,
Respondents-Appellees. ) Judge Presiding
JUSTICE McNULTY delivered the opinion of the court:
David Neely, Ph. D., attorney at law, filed nomination
papers by which he sought election to the office of alderman from
Chicago's 20th Ward in the February 2007 election. The Chicago
Board of Election Commissioners sustained an objection to the
nomination papers based on Neely's vote in the 8th Ward less than
a year before the 2007 election. The trial court, on
administrative review, upheld the Board's decision. Neely now
appeals.
We too affirm the Board's decision, finding that Neely's
deliberate assertion of residence in the 8th Ward in March 2006
proves that he has not resided in the 20th Ward, for purposes of
serving as a representative of that ward, for the requisite year