A controversial Evanston political action committee was ordered to turn over its financial records last month to the Illinois State Board of Elections but will escape fines because the group has since folded.
New Evanston Alliance published advertisements in April near the end of the aldermanic campaign in The Daily, the Evanston Review and the Evanston RoundTable. In the ads, which did not identify any of the group’s members, the group chastised City Council for problems in the city, using titles such as “Think Evanston Sucks?” and “Corridors of Condos and Crack.” The alliance also endorsed five candidates.
Ald. Arthur Newman (1st), who was not endorsed by the organization, faulted it for practices he said were illegal and in effect “cheating” because the practices did not follow election laws.
“I thought it was the antithesis of fair elections,” Newman said.
The group’s founders claimed earlier that the organization did not need to register with the Illinois State Board of Elections and reveal its financial sources because it did not cross the $3,000 threshold, which would have required registration and disclosure of all financial activity. But following a complaint filed by Evanston resident Dick Stillerman, the Illinois State Board of Elections found that the price for the ads as well as the group’s Web site did break the $3,000 mark.
Because the board ruled against New Evanston Alliance, the organization must disclose the source and use of all its money to the board, where it will become public knowledge. But legal fees for the proceedings will not be revealed since campaign finance laws do not dictate any procedure for this particular situation, said Daniel White, the assistant executive director of the board of elections.
The organization also was not required to pay any penalties in the matter.
Colleen Burke, an attorney with the board, said this is a frequent concession made when a group is no longer in existence.
“If (the board) can cure the alleged defect without a penalty, it will,” Burke said.
The original goal of the organization as expressed in April was to practice grassroots activism and involve voters in issues such as development and cooperation with Northwestern, according to the organization’s co-chairmen, Paul Wallace and Lonnie Wilson. These lifelong Evanston residents said the advertisements were meant to stimulate greater voter participation.
“We want to create more passion for the process,” Wallace said in April. “Nothing changes – everybody stays the same.”
Newman said he hopes the city returns to a normal elections process. Although he said the events were like “water under the bridge,” he hopes others will follow election guidelines more closely.
“I just want to go forward,” Newman said. “I hope in the future there will be fair play.”
