Randy Cassady now officially off ballot for Monroe County commissioner
Randy Cassady will not appear on the Nov. 5, 2024 ballot as the Republican Party’s nominee for District 2 Monroe County commissioner.
At a Thursday afternoon meeting of Monroe County’s three-member election board, the hearing on the challenge to Randy Cassady’s eligibility as a candidate was dispatched in about 10 minutes.
The outcome was that Cassady’s name will be removed from the ballot, because he did not satisfy the 6-month requirement for residency in Monroe County commissioner District 2.
The outcome was not a surprise, because at last Thursday’s regular election board meeting, Cassady appeared in front of the board acknowledging the residency issue, in response to the challenge filed two days earlier by Monroe County Democratic Party chair David Henry, based on Cassady’s residency.
That means incumbent Democrat Julie Thomas is unchallenged in the District 2 county commissioner race. The race for District 3 county commissioner is between Democrat Jody Madeira and Republican Joe Van Deventer.
Most of Thursday’s short election board meeting was taken up by a reading into the record of the agreed upon stipulated facts and findings that had been worked out in advance by Cassady, Henry, Cassady’s attorney Allison Weber, and county attorney Molly Turner-King.
During the meeting, Cassady and Henry affirmed to the election board under oath that they had, in fact, signed the statement that Turner-King had read aloud. But they did not give further remarks. Election board members did not engage in any deliberations on the matter.
Board president John Fernandez, who is the Democratic Party’s appointee, chaired the meeting over a video conferencing connection. Fernandez was appreciative of the way the candidacy challenge had been addressed. Fernandez said, “Thank all of you for your cooperation and collaboration in trying to bring this matter to an appropriate conclusion.”
The vote by the three board members, accepting the stipulated agreement, was 3–0.
Appearing in person on the board were Monroe County’s elected clerk, Democrat Nicole Browne, and Judith Benckart, the Republican Party’s appointee.
Some type of board action was required in order to take Cassady’s name off the ballot, because the deadline for a candidate to voluntarily withdraw passed a couple of weeks ago.
Of the nine enumerated points in the stipulated agreement, it’s point (7) that is the highlight:
(7) … Cassady does not meet the residency requirements set forth in Indiana Code § 3-8-1- 21(2) and as a result is ineligible for candidacy for County Commissioner District 2. The parties stipulate that the filed candidacy challenge should be upheld to effectively remove Mr. Cassady’s name from the November 5, 2024 General Election ballot.
Last week, Cassady already indicated he would not be contesting the issue, after a second consultation with the state election division’s legal counsel—he had also consulted with the division’s legal counsel before declaring his candidacy, on June 25.
But Henry’s challenge prompted Cassady to inquire again with the election division. At last week’s board meeting Cassady said about the state election division’s determination: “I accept that determination and am therefore suspending my campaign, effective immediately.”
Last week, Cassady added, “I love this community and I will continue as an active resident to help chart a path forward for our county that puts common sense and the best interests of residents first.”
When Cassady was put on the ballot as the Republican Party’s District 2 nominee—he did not stand as a primary candidate—his name was already familiar to the community. He serves as a member of both Bloomington’s and Monroe County’s redevelopment commissions and is owner of Cassady Electric, the the local electrical contracting company.
In a statement last week about Cassady’s decision, Henry wrote to The B Square: “I thank Mr. Cassady for stepping aside this cycle. Randy is a sincere and charitable person in our community.”
The state law in question is IC 3-8-1-21, which states a candidate for county commissioner must be a resident of their district at least six months before the general election.
Even though county commissioners are elected by all registered voters across the county, candidates have to have proper residency in their geographic district.
In her letter last week, Cassady’s attorney, Allison Weber, described a misunderstanding about the definition of “six months” apparently based on Cassady’s consultation with the state election division—but does not elaborate.
Henry’s complaint had identified May 7, 2024 as the date of Cassady’s start of residency in District 2, based on the date of his voter registration at a new District 2 address. The agreed upon stipulated facts give some additional insight into the six-month issue.
The stipulated agreement indicates that Cassady had provided a copy of a lease dated May 6, 2024 for his District 2 residence. Based on six pages in a monthly calendar, subtracting six months would put the required start of residency on May 5, 2024. But subtracting half the number of days in a year (as a definition of six months) from Nov. 5, would make for a required start date of May 6.
