A Cook County Circuit Court judge is currently considering arguments regarding an appeal to the objection of an advisory referendum question for the Nov. 3 village of Oak Park voting ballot that was overruled last month by a village electoral board.
The objection to the question, “Should the state of Illinois repeal laws that ban state investment in businesses that boycott the state of Israel?” was overruled by a local electoral board consisting of Village President Vicki Scaman and Trustees James Taglia and Chibuike Enyia. The referendum question was brought forth by Oak Parkers for Free Speech.
Attorney Michael Kasper of the Chicago government-relations law firm Kasper, Holmes & Dring, representing referendum question objectors Alan H. Peres and Piergiorgio Uslenghi, appealed that decision, which ultimately led to a Sept. 11 hearing in front of circuit court Judge Viviana Martinez that lasted 90 minutes and didn’t result in a ruling.
According to an Oak Park village spokesperson, Martinez instead took the matter under advisement to provide additional time to consider the issue and prepare a decision, which could come this week.
The spokesperson said that a ruling in support of the electoral board would mean its decision stands and the question would stay on the Nov. 3 ballot. A ruling overturning the electoral board would invalidate the referendum petition and as a result, the question would be removed from the ballot, though that decision could be appealed to state appellate court.
Caren Van Slyke of Oak Parkers for Free Speech was at Friday’s hearing at the Daley Center and said the arguments in front of Martinez were “pretty robust,” but wasn’t surprised there wasn’t a decision Friday.
“She had a lot of questions she needs to consider and do what she has to do,” Van Slyke said. “She is well aware of the timeline.”
But to Van Slyke, there is a larger issue at play.
“I think Oak Park should be concerned about the effort to remove (the referendum question) from the ballot,” she said. “After signatures have been collected, there is a period of time where the voters’ home addresses and signatures can be checked and challenged. That is the normal process to guarantee there are enough valid signatures to put it on the ballot. They chose not to do that.
“Instead of doing the nitty gritty work, they asked the courts to step in for hypothetical fraud.”
Jesse Bauer is also with Oak Parkers for Free Speech and while he wasn’t at Friday’s hearing, the fact that it lasted 90 minutes without a decision was a bit of a surprise for him. For now, he said, the organization is operating under the assumption the question will remain on the ballot.
To that end, he said it is planning community outreach efforts to get out the vote, involving education, fundraising, town halls and canvassing.
The group Jewish Community and Friends for Democracy, which is not affiliated with Peres and Uslenghi, offered no statement on the matter.