FRED HAIGH RESIDENCY MATTER: Ive had LOTS of you contacting me via phone, text, and private message regarding the Fred Haigh residency matter. I am still reviewing the matter myself, but sadly, things are not looking good for Haigh. Nor for the Allen County Election Board. Locally, the ACEB has set forth a terrible precedent in the Schrader matter of 2011 and as such, any board members involved in the Schrader matter (i.e. Republicans Liz Borgmann and Tom Hardin) should recuse themselves in the Haigh matter. In the Schrader matter--Schrader left Fort Wayne to go on a month-long vacation in Wisconsin. Due to a tragedy (or comedy) of events that caused a delay in Schraders return to Fort Wayne, he was not in town when he won the 2011 City Council At-Large primary, as a Democrat. The Democrats were embarrassed by this win, and the establishment needed fellow candidate George Guido of Carson Boxberger to be their Tim Pape replacement on City Council. (Yes, the same Tim Pape who is now a member of the Allen County Election Board.) The Democrats worked to have Schrader illegally removed from the ballot AFTER the Primary by making false claims that Schrader did not meet eligibility requirements of one year from the date of the May, 2011 primary. The Republican-controlled Allen County Election Board worked in tandem with the Democrats to remove Schrader. (More details later to anyone who asks.) The ACEB didnt address the Democrats original theory that Schrader didnt meet eligibility requirements--in part because they couldnt. (I, personally, got an affidavit signed by Schraders postal carrier confirming Schraders residency in Fort Wayne for seven years.) Instead, the ACEB determined that Schrader had given up residency and that he only intended to come back to his hometown because he won the Primary. This determination was wrongly upheld by Circuit Court Judge Thomas Felts, who did so by allowing Tom Hardin, Felts former campaign treasurer, to create a technicality out of nothing so that the Schrader matter could be thrown out without Felts having to rule on it. If Felts were to have actually ruled on the matter, as a matter of law--he would have had to rule in Schraders favor. In the meantime, the ACEB, without having a court order to allow them to do so, illegally placed Guido on the ballot in Schraders place. Technically, the ACEB can remove a candidate, but they have no authority to replace or add a candidate without a court order. In the matter of Haigh--Haigh filed paperwork sometime after the May primary claiming as his residence a domicile in Kingston Place. Haigh moved out of that home in September with the intent of moving someplace else. Pursuant to I.C. 3-5-5-4, Haigh has abandoned his Fort Wayne residence as left this residence and admits he intended to establish a residence elsewhere in Fort Wayne. Since leaving his Kingston Place residence in Fort Wayne, Haigh has not secured another domicile in the 84th District. He has been traveling back and forth between his Coldwater, Michigan home (a home that was put on the market, sold, and then the buyer backed out) and his daughters Fort Wayne residence. He has not secured a temporary Fort Wayne domicile, his furniture (bed) and other trappings of residency are in storage, and he is therefore, technically, homeless. Or is he? He has a permanent home in Coldwater, Michigan--a home that receives a homeowners primary residence deduction. If we assume the best case scenario, then Haigh is homeless. Now, being homeless does not cause him to lose rights as a voter. Matter-of-fact, according to the ACEB, residency can be established by registering to vote and then merely casting a ballot--at least that was the flimsy reasoning used in the Schrader matter to remove a candidate off the ballot who vacationed in another jurisdiction/another state. Under this reasoning (and horribly bad Schrader precedent), Haigh has a chance. However, that scenario forces everyone to have to ignore the fact that Haigh has a permanent home in Coldwater, Michigan--a home that receives a homeowners primary residence deduction. It also begs the question: Is home where the homeowners deduction is or is it where the voter registers and casts his ballot? Interestingly, the Republican-controlled ACEB has really set themselves up for quite the quagmire---one possibly ripe for review by the Indiana Attorney Generals office. If they determine Haigh is not eligible to be a candidate in the 84th district, then they are implicity admitting wrong-doing in the Schrader matter. If they determine Haigh is eligible, then they continue the horribly bad precedent set forth in the Schrader matter. Making this matter even more thought-provoking is Haigh allegedly consulted with State election officials in this matter. But what did the Indiana Election Commission have to say in this matter? Did they issue an advisory opinion? In the Schrader matter, the IEC stated that the ACEB had no authority to remove Schrader from the ballot after the Primary and that ACEB was advised of such--but that advisement came after ACEB had already removed Schrader. Republican Zach Klutz was a member of the ACEB in 2011, during the Schrader matter. Currently, he serves as a member of the IEC. Finally, this matter--while a very serious matter--is also entertaining. Why? Liz Borgmann is up for re-election as the Clerk of Courts. She is running unopposed because the Democrats refuse to put anyone on the ballot to challenge that position. Her husband, Dan Borgmann, is currently running in a competative non-partisan race for Allen Superior Court. Circuit Court Judge Thomas Felts is up for re-election. He too is running unopposed. This dynamic duo controls the election rules and the application of election laws. The outcome of the Haigh matter could trigger a review by both the Indiana Attorney General and Indiana Judiciary with relation to both the Haigh matter of 2014 and the Schrader matter of 2011. Oh what webs we weave....
Posted on: Thu, 30 Oct 2014 15:54:17 +0000