Objection Against Argoudelis' Mayoral Petition Overruled

PLAINFIELD, IL — A mayoral candidate for the April 6 election will stay on the ballot after officials overruled an objection made against his petition.

Following a hearing a Tuesday, the Plainfield Electoral Board voted 3-0 to allow John Argoudelis to run for village president. Argoudelis, former Plainfield Township Supervisor and Will County Board member, is running against current trustee Margie Bonuchi.

The objection, by Plainfield resident Ernest C. Knight, listed various ways Knight claimed Argoudelis' petition packet was not in compliance with the state laws. Knight said that when the candidate asked for signatures from residents, at least nine pages of his petition did not mention which office he was seeking election for.

Knight claims that after the qualified voters put in their signatures, Argoudelis entered the office on each page by hand. He also said that information was entered after the pages had been notarized.

This, Knight said, called into the question the integrity of the petition as it constitutes "false swearings and total disregard of the mandatory provisions of the Illinois Election Code" by Argoudelis.

Furthermore, when Argoudelis voted in the Nov. 3 election, he used an address in Plainfield where he had not been residing since many months prior, Knight said. He even said Argoudelis has not been a Plainfield resident, nor a registered voter in the village, for a year prior to his filling out the petition. In addition, he claimed Argoudelis did not have the required 115 validly collected signatures, according to Knight's claim.

However, after assessing the 170 signatures Argoudelis collected, the board declared his nomination papers valid.

"My campaign is vindicated, but this hearing should have never taken place. It was a political stunt orchestrated by my opponent to smear my name in advance of the April election," Argoudelis said. "They presented no evidence to back their claims and wasted taxpayer dollars in a failed attempt to deny voters a choice."

If the objection against Argoudelis was sustained, it would have meant an uncontested race for Bonuchi.

"Margie doesn’t want me in the race because she wants to run unopposed to protect her
institutional power," he said. "I am seeking this office because she and her allies, like Township Supervisor Tony Fremarek who was just indicted by federal authorities, have been in control of our town far too long. They lack vision and are more concerned with serving themselves. We need leaders who put Plainfield residents first."

Argoudelis also said that the hearing was "solely about the current clique maintaining their grip on power."

"I'm grateful to all the members of the Board for this ruling and look forward to the opportunity to campaign directly to the residents of Plainfield," he said.

Bonuchi did not immediately return Patch's request for a comment.