The outcome of the Nov. 7 election in the Kaneland school district is coming under fire from two fronts.
First, the Kaneland school board is seeking a recount in an effort to resuscitate a 27-cent hike in its education fund property tax rate that appears to have been defeated by three votes.
Second, two school board candidates say the election was mired in fraud and confusion.
The school board Monday night asked residents to call for a discovery recount of the referendum question. State law will allow five voters in a petition to examine the ballots and voting machines in three of Kaneland’s 12 precincts.
Bob Britz, the school district’s attorney, said the people would be looking for irregularities to determine whether a court should call for a total recount or if a special election before the March primary is warranted.
On the other front, candidate Timothy Thompson and incumbent Sandra Joseph are contesting the school board race, because of campaign misconduct and because the interpretation of the winner was not based on case law.
Based on the numbers, Mark Delaney, incumbent Richard Samuelson, Thomas Thomas and incumbent Bonnie Proctor were elected to 4-year terms. Joseph defeated school board President Allen Miller in the 2-year term race.
A problem arose because the Kaneland district limits the number of school board members from a township to three. Current board members Harry Hartman and Roberta Siebert live in Blackberry Township, leaving one seat open for either Proctor or Joseph, both of Blackberry Township.
In a 5-2 vote, the school board took the recommendation of the school attorney and the Illinois State Board of Elections that advised that the 4-year terms be slotted first, meaning Proctor would retain her seat and Miller, who lost by 79 votes, would be elected instead of Joseph.
If the decision were reversed, Joseph would serve the 2-year term and Thompson would be given a seat on the board.
