WEST ORANGE, NJ — The president of the West Orange Town Council says he isn’t taking his exclusion from this year’s ballot lying down.
Last week, the town clerk’s office provided Patch with a list of six candidates who will be appearing on the ballot for the 2024 nonpartisan municipal election in West Orange. The list was absent one high-profile name: Bill Rutherford.
Rutherford – one of three council members whose seats will expire this year – said that his placement on the ballot was denied, adding that he planned to challenge the decision. See Related: West Orange Town Council Race Heats Up (See 2024 Candidate List)
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On Tuesday, Rutherford provided Patch with an update on the situation.
“Unfortunately, my reelection campaign for councilman at large is currently under dispute,” he reported.
Find out what's happening in West Orangewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
According to Rutherford, he received a letter from the municipal clerk’s office on Aug. 23, which said his submission of petitions to get on the ballot was fatally deficient.
“That letter forbid me from having any opportunity to address those claimed deficiencies,” he said. “According to the rules given to every candidate – rules that were given to us by the clerk herself – I should have had until Aug. 26 at 4 p.m. to address those deficiencies.”
“The reasons given for excluding me from the normal process were wholly inadequate,” Rutherford continued. “In response, today we filed an order to show cause seeking to overturn the municipal clerk’s unilateral decision to deny my placement on the ballot this fall.”
The councilman alleged that his exclusion from the ballot is “completely without merit” and “disenfranchises” more than 450 residents who signed his petition.
“They, like me, and thousands of other residents who support me, are being denied our right to participate in the democratic process,” he said.
“With help from my legal team, we will pursue this matter in court to make sure every resident of West Orange is treated fairly,” Rutherford concluded. “We deserve a government that represents the people and I will do everything I can to make sure that is exactly the government we have in West Orange.”
Rutherford was elected to the council in 2020. He ran for mayor in 2022, coming up short in a tight four-way race to Susan McCartney.
Patch reached out to the town clerk’s office seeking more details about why Rutherford didn’t make the cut for this year’s ballot. The clerk’s office declined to comment on the pending legal matter, but said a statement will be issued once the matter has been resolved.
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