Marathon Pundit: Moore news on Chicago's 49th Ward

I have a copy of Don Gordon's lawsuit against Alderman Joe Moore and the Illinois State Board of Elections Commissioners. Chicago's 49th Ward has 42 precincts, and Gordon, Moore's opponent in the April 17th run-off election, is challenging the results in 22 of those precincts. In those precincts, according to the lawsuit, there were anywhere from (more than) 3 to 42 "unqualified and fraudulent votes cast."

One such vote is of course one too many. The Illinois Constitution, in Article III, Section 3, states, "All elections shall be free and equal."

If Gordon's charges prove to be true, then the April 17 election failed to meet the standard set by the state constitution.

Since it's impossible to sort out any alleged "unqualified and fraudulent votes" from legal ones, Gordon seeks to toss out the votes in those 22 precincts. If Gordon's suit prevails, then he ends up winning the election by 547 votes. The unoffical results posted on the Chicago Board of Elections site has Moore defeating by 247 votes--out of 7,802 cast.

Moore and his minions have been oddly quiet about Don Gordon's lawsuit. But over the last few years, the longtime alderman has been quiet noisy about Wal-Mart, foie gras, and the Iraq War.

But on the streets of Rogers Park, the borders of which closely match those of the 49th Ward, there's a lot of work to be done by an alderman who focused on local issues. For an idea of what I'm talking about, visit this blog, this one, this one, or well, this one.

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