Ald. Lionel Jean-Baptiste (2nd) was knocked off the April 5 election ballot after the Evanston Electoral Board ruled Friday that his nominating petitions were filled out incorrectly.

The board — Ald. Arthur Newman (1st), Mayor Lorraine H. Morton and City Clerk Mary Morris — voted 2-1 that Jean-Baptiste’s petitions were invalid because they did not mention the office he was seeking.

Jean-Baptiste told The Daily he would not appeal the board’s decision. But he vowed to mount a write-in campaign to keep the seat, which he has held since 2001.

“I have enough of a base to win as a write-in candidate,” he said. “I believe I will be elected.”

The decision leaves Christopher Stewart as the only Second Ward aldermanic candidate on the ballot.

Stewart’s campaign manager, Cathryn Crawford, said she was upset to see Jean-Baptiste leave the ballot because of “technicalities.” She said the Stewart campaign hoped to see Jean-Baptiste mount a write-in campaign.

“A one-sided race is not going to be as productive, in terms of defining and addressing the issues,” Crawford said.

The decision to remove Jean-Baptiste was prompted by a challenge filed Feb. 1 by Second Ward resident Robert Nierodzik. Crawford said Nierodzik called her before filing the challenge and the Stewart campaign tried to discourage him from submitting it.

The board decided Friday to reject six of the Nierodzik’s seven objections to the petitions. But the board upheld the complaint that Jean-Baptiste failed to mention the office he sought.

Nierodzik said Sunday that he was satisfied with the board’s decision, but disappointed that more of his objections were not upheld.

The board voted Thursday to remove Fourth Ward aldermanic candidate Ryan Garton for a similar failure to list the office for which he was running. Unlike Garton’s petitions, however, Jean-Baptiste’s nominating papers listed the ward in which he was running.

Garton said Sunday he was not sure whether he would appeal or run as a write-in.

Newman, who voted to remove Jean-Baptiste’s name, said it is essential to inform residents of the position candidates are seeking.

“The problem is without this rule, everything is wide open,” he said. “He could have been running for a school board position. There should be no doubt when someone signs a petition that they know what it means.”

Morton opposed the decision to remove Jean-Baptiste, saying the decision should be based on the spirit of the law, not “omissions.”

“These people who signed it wanted to be a part of the process,” she said. “I don’t think there was any fraud in this.”

Jean-Baptiste said residents would not have been confused about what position he sought, because he already represents them as alderman. He said his circulators verbally specified he was running for the aldermanic position.

“I’m well-established in the community as alderman,” he said. “People know who I am.”

Upset but empowered after the decision, Jean-Baptiste said he will continue campaigning hard. Jean-Baptiste said he is not worried about winning, after earning 85 percent of the votes in the 2001 aldermanic election.

The Daily’s Breanne Gilpatrick and Jared Goldberg-Leopold contributed to this report.

Reach Stephanie Chen at [email protected].