| Election commission seeks stay in lawsuit |
By: Sabrina Bates, News Editor
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Posted: Thursday, November 19, 2009 9:56 am
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It was a brief meeting Monday afternoon for the Weakley County Election Commission as board members discussed the status of two lawsuits aimed at the commission as well as certain board members.
“As you all are aware, three Republicans serving on this board have been sued on a federal basis,” election commission chairman Wayne Chester told board members.
Chester said there has been no progress in the case due to a stay that has been filed on the commissioners’ behalf.
The Supreme Court will now determine if a county election commission is considered a county or state entity.
Across the state, several counties face similar lawsuits targeted at Republican commissioners when the majority in the state’s general assembly transferred from Democrat to Republican.
A handful of county election administrators appointed by Democrats were ousted after the political switch. As a result, county election commissions became the target of chancery court lawsuits.
In Weakley County, ousted election administrator Diane Cashon, filed suit against the election commission as a whole charging her termination due to political affiliation violated her First and Fourteenth Amendment rights.
Republican election commissioners Kitty Soder, Danny Powell and Chester were also sued on a federal level for allegedly violating the state’s Sunshine Act.
“This has moved from a political situation to a technical situation. It is now a question of who will pay, the county or the state,” Chester noted.
As of Monday, there has been no “stay” filed in the Weakley County Chancery Court suit against the election commission. Chester also told board members that the commission has yet to file an answer to the local lawsuit filed by Cashon in June. He claimed the board has not hired an attorney to represent it for the chancery court case.
For a fee, Mary Farrar of Nashville, has agreed to file a “stay” on the election commission’s behalf, according to Chester. Farrar also represents the three Republican commissioners targeted in the federal suit.
Cashon joined six other ousted election administrators across the state in filing suit against their local election commissions after an opinion released by Attorney General Bob Cooper claimed administrators fired based solely on political affiliation could violate their First and Fourteenth Amendment rights.
Cashon served as Weakley County’s Election Administrator for nearly 30 years. She was replaced earlier this year by Barbara Castleman.
Rutherford County Election Administrator Hooper Penuel was successful in retaining his threatened post after U.S. District Judge John Nixon issued a temporary restraining order in a federal suit filed on Penuel’s behalf.
Chester said a motion for a stay was expected to be filed in Weakley County Chancery Court at 9 a.m. on Monday, Nov. 23 on behalf of the election commission.
In other news, Castleman offered board members a handout listing each key date in the upcoming election year.
Castleman stressed neither Republican nor Democratic parties in the county have sent her a letter requesting a county primary for May 2010.
The political parties have to “call” for a primary election by Dec. 18.
Castleman said those seeking office during the May 2010 primary can begin picking up petitions Nov. 20, but if the parties do not call for a primary, there will not be an election in the spring.
The qualifying deadline to seek office in the event the county political parties opt for a May 4, 2010 primary is by noon Feb. 18, 2010.
Chester commended Castleman for recently passing her certification.
He also commended the employees at the election commission office for a smooth transition into their new building on Poplar Street in Dresden.
WCP 11.17.09 |
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