Nomination petition challenge successful
WAYNESBURG – The name of incumbent Monongahela Township supervisor James Rumble will not be on the ballot for the Democratic nomination for supervisor in the spring primary, according to a decision issued Tuesday by the Greene County Court.
Judge William Nalitz sustained objections filed March 19 by several township residents who claimed five of the signatures on Rumble’s nomination petitions were not qualified under the election code, leaving Rumble with only nine qualified signatures, one short of the number needed for the office.
Rumble, seeking re-election, had filed nomination petitions that included 14 signatures with the Greene County Office of Election and Voter Registration.
The residents claimed one person who signed Rumble’s petition, Susan G. Malone, is not a registered voter; and another, Jerry Shiflett, is not a registered Democrat.
Three others who signed Rumble’s petition, George Gaynor, JoAnn Rumble and Jerome Dorsey, had signed the petition of another Democratic candidate for the office, Gary Cline, before they signed James Rumble’s petition, the residents said.
At a hearing Friday, Judy Rizor, administrative assistant in the election office, testified Shiflett is a registered voter, but with no party affiliation. She further testified Malone’s registration had been canceled in November 2010 for inactivity because Malone had failed to vote in two consecutive federal general elections.
One of the objectors, Trudi Monahan, testified regarding the dates on which Gaynor, JoAnn Rumble and Dorsey signed the two candidates petitions. Copies of Cline’s and Rumble’s petition, listing the dates on which the electors had signed, were included with documents in the resident’s complaint.
A candidate for township supervisor must present petitions signed by at least 10 qualified electors of the same party, Nalitz said, citing election law.
An elector can sign only one petition for each office being filled, he further said. In the event a person signs more than one petition, his signature shall count only for the candidate whose petition is signed first.
Rumble’s attorney, Dennis Makel, argued that a copy of the residents’ objection had to be filed with the elections office, which had not been done.
Nalitz noted, however, Rizor had testified the residents had attempted to file the objections with her office, but she declined to accept it and referred the residents to the prothonotary.
Makel also argued the law required those electors whose signatures were in question to be in the courtroom to testify. Nalitz said a review of reported cases involving similar objections, however, indicates courts have accepted registration records and handwriting analysis, among other things, but made it no requirement a person appear and admit he signed two petitions for the same office.
Comparison of the two petitions is sufficient to present a prima facie case, Nalitz added. When presented with this evidence, Rumble offered no response on the merits.
Nalitz concluded: “The election code should be liberally construed so as not to deny a perspective candidate the opportunity to run nor to deprive the citizens the right to vote for the candidate of their choice, but the provisions of the election code are not mere technicalities but necessary to preserve the integrity of the election process.
“The requirements for appearing on the ballot as a candidate for the office of township supervisor are so modest, i.e., obtaining the signatures of ten Democrats who did not sign someone else’s petition, that failure to do so leaves us no choice but to set aside the nomination petition of James Rumble for the position of Democrat nominee for Monongahela Township of Greene County.”
Other objectors are Larry and Tina Rogerson and Marjorie Rudolph and Mike Rudolph Sr., who is the third Democratic candidate for the six-year supervisors position.
Rumble declined comment regarding the court’s decision and neither Monahan nor the Rudolphs could be reached for comment.