With only a short time before early voting begins, the decision on who will be running for Position 2 on the five-member Norfork School Board moved from the ballot box to the courtroom Wednesday.After an hour long hearing, Circuit Judge Andrew Bailey took the matter under advisement and issued his ruling Thursday denying the petition filed by Levi Woods, the current holder of the position who was disqualified when it was found he had applied for the wrong position. In his four page ruling, Judge Bailey wrote “the court finds that by placing the wrong position number on his candidacy paperwork, Mr. Woods was not compliant with the strict requirements of our election laws. Mr. Woods was ineligible for certification by the Baxter County Clerk for placement on the March 2024 ballot and the court is without authority in the law to declare otherwise”.
Judge Bailey noted, “it is unfortunate that Mr. Woods’ reliance upon the representations of the Baxter County Clerk’s Office was determinative of his decision to petition for and file for the incorrect position. However, the strict enforcement of election law is not subject to equity’s reach, and a candidate’s filings are his own.”
Early voting is set to begin February 20 with the election on March 5.
Jared Woodward of Jonesboro, the attorney representing Woods, who is currently the president of the school board and the holder of the Position 2 seat, argued that miscommunication and confusion led Woods to file for the wrong slot (Position 1) on the board.
The error disqualified him from appearing on the ballot and Woods’ petition asked the court to order him reinstated.
Only one board position is up for election each year and in 2024 that is Position 2.
The lawsuit alleges that incorrect information Woods received at the Baxter County Clerk’s Office created the problem.
Woods contends he went to the clerk’s office in mid-November last year to file the necessary petition and supporting documents in his bid for reelection to the school board.
He alleges he sat down with two staff members in the clerk’s office and they spent about 10 minutes going over documents and checking to make sure the signatures on his petition were those of valid voters.
Woods contends that after the process was concluded, he inquired of the staff members if Position 1 was the correct one for him to list on his documents. He testified Wednesday that after the process had been completed, he inquired of the staff members if Position 1 was the correct one for him to list on his documents and they both confirmed “everything was good to go.”
In his petition, Woods says about a week later, he received a call from Baxter County Clerk Canda Reese. She was reported to have advised him that the board position listed on his paperwork was incorrect and that he was disqualified from being placed on the ballot. According to testimony, the call came after the deadline for filing has passed.
Woods told the court he believed the voters should decide who represents them on the Norfork School Board and that the election should not be decided on an “inconsequential clerical error” caused by reliance on erroneous information provided by the clerk’s office.
Norfork School District Superintendent “Chip” Layne testified in support of Woods’ petition and basically backed Woods’ allegation about the confusing information that was received about the proper board position that he should have indicated on his paperwork. Layne testified that he had also been told at one point by staff members in the clerk’s office that Woods would be contesting Position 1 on the school board. He said he had given the information to Woods, but later found out that was not correct and that Woods was being disqualified because he had filed for the wrong position. Layne said Woods had told him he would confirm the position number with the clerk’s office when he turned in his paperwork.
Reese filed an answer to Woods’ petition January 11. In the answer, she contends all allegations that there was a “discussion about numbering or renumbering positions on the Norfork School Board “are specifically denied.”
According to the clerks answer, the two staff members mentioned in Woods’ petition “do not recall any discussion about the correct position number.”
The answer by Reese points out, “the clerk has the responsibility to certify candidates to the Baxter County Election Commission but it is the commission that places names on the ballot and that should be done 75 days in advance of the election.”
Reese’s answer also contends that for the court to grant Woods’ request, would be “patently unfair to the person who did file correctly for Position 2 on the board.”
In the answer to Woods’ lawsuit, Reese contends that “it is impossible for the court to grant the full relief requested” since the county clerk has “no authority” to put Woods on the ballot. The election commission has the power but was not a named party in Woods’ lawsuit.
In her testimony during Wednesday’s hearing, Reese said she wished Woods had filed for the correct position “and that my office had caught the error. I wish I could unring this bell. If I could, I would certainly do so.” She testified that staff in the clerk’s office had “retrained” on the statutory requirement, unique to school board elections, that the clerk’s office verify that the prospective candidate is filing for the proper position.
It is not the first time Woods has had a problem with school board elections. In Reese’s answer, it is alleged that Woods “apparently filed for Position 2 about 10 years ago and had no opponent. However, since he failed to vote for himself, no one won the uncontested election and Woods had to be appointed to the seat.” In his testimony Wednesday, Woods said he had “shown up to vote but was told there was no election and I didn’t have a chance to vote.”
Woods’ lawsuit asked the court to issue a writ of mandamus and/or a declaratory judgment that would allow Woods to correct the errors in his paperwork and put him back on the ballot for the Position 2 seat on the board.
A writ of mandamus is a court order to an inferior official to fulfill their duties or correct an abuse of discretion.
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