Start over with election board

DuPage County Board of Elections. Those words strike terror in the hearts of many a would-be politician. Average people, who want only to give back to their community, have to go through a process that is full of mine fields.

They have to maneuver through the field without the help or guidance of the very board that is in charge of helping people get elected. The newcomer has to either wing it alone, knowing one mistake will get them bounced out of the process, or incur the expense of hiring a lawyer to go over the paperwork, to make sure everything is foolproof.

Now we have the board not following the rules that are supposed to govern them. There is legal counsel available to them, someone who is supposed to keep them on the straight and narrow; why then did this occur? Mr. Pat Bond is available to them 24/7. He is retained by them to keep them within the parameters of the law. Mr. Carney defends their work by saying a consultant’s report misunderstands state law among other things.

May I put to you that the report committee followed the state law to the letter, without putting any spin on it to make it work for them. That is what legal counsel is supposed to do.

The board is supposes to be nonpartisan. When they are hearing cases, the discussions and decisions should be done in public, and not behind closed doors previous to the hearing, as was the practice when I ran for offices. We should have a right to hear opinions of our judges during the discussions.

In my opinion, we should start new, with everyone being replaced, including legal counsel. The whole process should be reviewed and revamped, making it more user friendly and user fair.

Joyce Arnesen

Wood Dale