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News
Vote to keep school board elected at-large? : News : Oswego Ledger-Sentinel : Hometown Newspaper for Oswego and Montgomery, IllinoisVote to keep school board elected at-large?
| Attorney tells board of referendum option
| by Lyle R. Rolfe
| 12/27/2012
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The Oswego School District Board was recently advised by its attorney that beginning with the next board election April 9 no more than five of the board's seven members may reside in incorporated areas of the district.
The other two members, attorney Maureen Lemon told the board, must live in unincorporated areas of the 68 square mile school district.
Incorporated areas would include the cities of Aurora, Joliet and Yorkville and the villages of Oswego, Montgomery and Plainfield.
For at least the past three decades, all seven board members have run and been elected at large.
Lemon said all candidates must state at the time they file petitions whether they reside in the incorporated or unincorporated areas so they can be properly listed on the ballot.
The board now has two members living in the unincorporated areas-Ali Swanson, who was elected in April 2011 and Laurie Pasteris who is up for re-election in the April 9, 2013 election.
Swanson is not up for re-election until 2015, so voters must elect at least one more person from the unincorporated area in the April election, Lemon said.
If at least one candidate lives in the unincorporated area, he or she will win the seat regardless how many votes are received in comparison to other candidates on the ballot, Lemon noted.
But, if there are no candidates from the unincorporated area, then the board president will have to recommend someone to fill the seat. That person must receive a majority vote of the other board members, Lemon said.
Lemon noted that future population changes in the district could make these regulations null and void.
"For example, the total unincorporated area in the district is 40.2 square miles in size. If in the future that is reduced to 36 square miles or less, then none of these options would apply," she said.
Lemon said the district could place a referendum on the April ballot that would allow all future board candidates to run at-large in the district beginning with the 2015 election.
She recommended the school board place this proposition on the ballot at the April 9 election.
Lemon said the district comprises five townships--all of Oswego Township and portions of four other townships in Kendall, Kane and Will counties.
Board member Mike Scaramuzzi said he would favor asking voters to approve the referendum in April. He said having all candidates run at-large would assure voters that they were voting for candidates who would represent the entire district.
Lemon said she would present the referendum resolution to board members in January for their consideration. The board, at that time, will have the option of placing in on the April ballot.
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