Prairie State Wire

Illinois State Board of Elections met Jan. 22.

Here are the minutes provided by the board:

PRESENT: Casandra B. Watson, Chair

Laura K. Donahue, Vice Chair

Jennifer M. Ballard Croft, Member

Tonya L. Genovese, Member

Catherine S. McCrory, Member

Rick S. Terven, Sr., Member

Jack Vrett, Member

ABSENT: Cristina D. Cray, Member

ALSO PRESENT: Bernadette M. Matthews, Executive Director

Jeremy Kirk, Assistant Executive Director

Marni M. Malowitz, General Counsel

Amy L. Calvin, Executive Administrative Assistant

The meeting convened at 10:00 a.m. via videoconference with seven Members present. Vice Chair Donahue and Members Genovese and Terven were present in the Springfield office. Members Ballard Croft, McCrory and Vrett were present in the Chicago office and Chair Watson was present via Zoom. Member Cray was absent and Vice Chair Donahue held her proxy.

Chair Watson opened the meeting by leading everyone in the pledge of allegiance.

Vice Chair Donahue moved to approve the minutes of the November 19 and December 2, 2024 meetings as presented. Member Terven seconded the motion, which passed by roll call vote of 8-0.

Ms. Malowitz presented and reviewed the settlement offers for agenda item 2.a.1-4.

1) SBE v. Campaign to Elect Dave Bartley, 21797, 22NF008. Ms. Malowitz recommended acceptance of the offer from the low dollar committee as it comports with the settlement guidelines. Mr. Bartley was present on behalf of the committee and concurred with the recommendation. Vice Chair Donahue moved to accept the settlement offer, which was seconded by Member Vrett and passed by roll call vote of 8-0.

3) SBE v. Jenna DeYong for City Clerk, 36632, 24JQ124; and

4) SBE v. Friends of Peter Adamson, 39262, 24NF058. Ms. Malowitz recommended acceptance of the offers from these low dollar committees as they comport with the settlement guidelines. Vice Chair Donahue moved to accept the settlement offers for the above noted committees, which was seconded by Member Ballard Croft and passed by roll call vote of 8-0.

2) SBE v. Deidre Baumann for Judge, 22396, 24MQ031. Ms. Malowitz recommended acceptance of the offer from the low dollar committee as it comports with the settlement guidelines. Ms. Bauman was present on behalf of the committee and asked for thirty days to pay. She was informed that the fine would have to be paid today to remain on the consolidated election ballot. Vice Chair Donahue moved to accept the settlement offer to be paid today, which was seconded by Member McCrory and passed by roll call vote of 8-0.

Ms. Malowitz presented and reviewed an appeal of campaign disclosure fines where she concurred with the hearing officer recommendation to grant the appeal and order the committee to file amended reports for agenda item 2.a.5.

5) SBE v. Kane County Republican Central Committee, 615, 24AM008. Ms. Malowitz added that the report should also be amended to include the correct contributor name. Vice Chair Donahue moved to grant the appeal and order the committee to file the amended reports as supplemented by the General Counsel. Member Genovese seconded the motion, which passed by roll call vote of 8-0.

Ms. Malowitz presented and reviewed an appeal of campaign disclosure fines where she concurred with the hearing officer recommendation to grant the appeal in part and deny the appeal in part for agenda item 2.a.6.

6) SBE v. Friends of Joseph E. Mercado, 39662, 24AM056. Vice Chair Donahue moved to accept the General Counsel’s recommendation to grant the appeal in part and deny the appeal in part. Member Genovese seconded the motion, which passed by roll call vote of 8-0.

Ms. Malowitz presented and reviewed the following appeals of campaign disclosure fines where she concurred with the hearing officer recommendations to deny the appeals for agenda items 2.a.7-20.

7) SBE v. Ogle County Republican Central Committee, 5091, 24AM012. Michael Koolidge, Chair and Kevin Colbert, Treasurer both appeared on behalf of the committee. Mr. Koolidge said he was unaware of the A-1 filing requirement and that it was an honest mistake. Mr. Colbert indicated that once the committee was notified of the violation eight months later, they updated their procedures to ensure timely filing of A-1 reports. After discussion, Member McCrory moved to deny the appeal. Member Vrett seconded the motion, which passed by roll call vote of 8-0.

15) SBE v. Friends of Tiffany Henyard, 36228, 24JQ111. Ms. Henyard was present on behalf of the committee and said she was unaware of any previous fines because she was not informed of the fine by the person who previously filed the report and asked that the fines be waived. Member Ballard Croft moved to deny the appeal, which was seconded by Member McCrory and passed by roll call vote of 8-0.

16) SBE v. Friends of Gina Meeks, 36372, 24AM001. Ms. Meeks was present on behalf of the committee and said this was her first time running for office. She explained that she had a serious medical condition that prevented her from completing the filings and is a current cancer survivor. Ms. Meeks asked for leniency and understood that she could get the fine reduced through the settlement process. Member McCrory moved to deny the appeal, which was seconded by Vice Chair Donahue and passed by roll call vote of 8-0.

17) SBE v. Friends of Shannon M. Saal, 36634, 24JQ125. Ms. Saal was present on behalf of the committee, admitted to the mistake in her committee’s reporting, and thanked the board for their time. Ms. Saal was advised that the fine would be stayed as a first violation and is not owed at this time. Vice Chair Donahue moved to deny the appeal, which was seconded by Member Genovese and passed by roll call vote of 8-0.

18) SBE v. Robb Tadelman for McHenry County Sheriff, 36725, 24AM036. Mr. Tadelman was present on behalf of the committee. He asked the board to take into consideration that the committee has not had prior violations and asked for leniency. Member McCrory moved to deny the appeal, which was seconded by Member Terven and passed by roll call vote of 8-0.

13) SBE v. Friends to Elect Jennifer Maddox, 35047, 24MQ089. Member Vrett moved to deny the appeal, which was seconded by Vice Chair Donahue and passed by roll call vote of 8- 0.

14) SBE v. Rolewicz4ETHS, 35119, 24MQ091. Ms. Malowitz further recommended that the total amount due would be $800, as the previously assessed penalties totaling $160 have been paid. Vice Chair Donahue moved accept the recommendation to deny the appeal as supplemented by the General Counsel. Member Genovese seconded the motion, which passed by roll call vote of 8-0.

9) SBE v. Friends to Elect Patty Gustin, 21909, 24JQ032. Ms. Malowitz recommended the appeal be granted in part because the first civil penalty expired and that the stayed penalty be recalculated as a first penalty making a total fine of $60. She recommended denying the remainder of the appeal. Vice Chair Donahue moved to adopt the recommendation of the General Counsel and that the appeal be granted in part and denied in part. Member Genovese seconded the motion, which passed by roll call vote of 8-0.

8) SBE v. Committee to Elect Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant, 19797, 24AM018;

10) SBE v. Citizens for Bridget Degnen, 34102, 23AS029;

11) SBE v. Friends of Bob Watt, 34433, 24JQ077;

12) SBE v. Onward Illinois, 34530, 24NF016;

19) SBE v. Harlan for Sheriff, 36965, 24JQ129; and

20) SBE v. Committee to Elect Villagrana, 39773, 24JQ097. Vice Chair Donahue moved to accept the recommendation to deny the above noted appeals. Member Genovese seconded the motion, which passed by roll call vote of 8-0.

Ms. Malowitz presented a list of civil penalty assessments necessitating a final board order for agenda item 2.a.21. Member McCrory moved to assess the civil penalties against the committees listed on pages 158-166 of the board packet. Member Vrett seconded the motion, which passed by roll call vote of 7-0. Chair Watson voted present in the matter.

A list of payment of civil penalty assessments for agenda item 2.a.22 was presented for informational purposes.

Next on the agenda was a complaint following closed preliminary hearing for agenda item 2.a.23) Blahunka v. Grum for Lake County, 24CD015. Ms. Malowitz informed the board that since no one was present for the parties, the matter could be dismissed for want of prosecution in open session. Member McCrory moved to dismiss the complaint for want of prosecution. Member Ballard Croft seconded the motion, which passed by roll call vote of 8-0.

Ms. Matthews presented the proposed amended rules regarding Business Entity Registration for Procurement (BEREP) contained on pages 169-191 of the board packet. The proposal is an attempt to take necessary steps to cure a repeat audit finding related to the statutory requirements in Section 9-35 of the Election Code to monitor whether business entities are updating registration information as required. Staff within the campaign disclosure, legal and executive divisions conferred and are presenting the rulemaking for board approval. The proposal makes necessary changes to existing sections 100.180 and 100.185 of the administrative rules. These recommended changes clarify what constitutes a violation of the registration requirements, establishes a complaint and hearing process for potential BEREP violations and provides the board discretion to impose a penalty for actual violations. Ms. Matthews explained that after board approval, the next step is to submit the rules to JCAR for their review and additional rulemaking procedures. Member Terven moved to approve the proposed rules as presented. Member McCrory seconded the motion, which passed by roll call vote of 8-0.

Next on the agenda was an update on the 2025 Consolidated Elections and Ms. Matthews presented the certification of the April 1, 2025 Consolidated Election ballot. Staff are seeking a board motion to certify the ballot and to also authorize staff to issue amended certifications as appropriate in the event of any candidate withdrawals, subject to confirmation from the affected election authorities that withdrawals can be processed and ballots updated without incurring burdensome reprinting and reprogramming costs. Ms. Matthews noted that a listing of those candidates that filed with the agency was available in both offices. Vice Chair Donahue moved to certify the April 1, 2025 Consolidated Election ballot and grant staff authorization to amend the certification as outlined by Ms. Matthews. Member Genovese seconded the motion, which passed by roll call vote of 8-0.

For informational purposes, a listing of those jurisdictions who will conduct a Consolidated Primary Election on February 25, 2025 was included in the board packet on page 192.

Ms. Matthews presented the legislative update and said the Senate and House session calendars were contained on pages 193-202 of the board packet. Staff is monitoring bills as they are proposed and Senior Policy Advisor Brian Pryor advised that he is seeking formal sponsorship of agency legislation. Staff will update the legislative subcommittee with any issues or agency impacts.

The voter registration activity report, grant funding update, fiscal reports and two year plan of staff activity for the months of January and February were presented for informational purposes.

Member Genovese moved to recess to executive session for the purpose of discussing the appointment, employment, compensation, performance, or dismissal of specific employees, the minutes of the November 19 and December 2 executive session meetings and pending litigation pursuant to Sections 2(c)(1), 2(c)(11) and 2(c)(21) of the Open Meetings Act, 5 ILCS 120. Member McCrory seconded the motion, which passed by roll call vote of 8-0. The meeting recessed at 11:25 a.m. and reconvened at 11:45 a.m. with the same attendance as noted in the initial roll call.

Vice Chair Donahue moved to approve the November 19 and December 2, 2024 executive session minutes. Member Vrett seconded the motion, which passed by roll call vote of 8-0.

Vice Chair Donahue moved to reappoint John Oldfield, Director of Voting and Registration Systems to a two year term, to be accompanied by a one year update on progress to the Board. Member Genovese seconded the motion, which passed by roll call vote of 8-0.

Member McCrory moved to approve the draft settlement agreement in Raoul and SBE vs. LGIS, Lake County number 2024CH93. Member Ballard Croft seconded the motion, which passed by roll call vote of 8-0.

With there being no further business before the Board, Vice Chair Donahue moved to adjourn until Wednesday, February 19, 2025. Member Genovese seconded the motion, which passed unanimously. The meeting ended at 11:50 a.m.

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