Comments on Advance Indiana™: The Man Behind Kelty

Great site! Also check out The Polis at www.polisp...

2007-06-11T14:19:00.000-05:00

Great site! Also check out The Polis at www.polispolitics.com they have some interesting stoff on Indiana pols.

If they determine that Kelty violated the law, the...

2007-06-11T09:47:00.000-05:00

If they determine that Kelty violated the law, the Allen County Election Board will refer it to the Prosecuting Attorney. She is then likely to call in someone from another county as special prosecutor.

IC 3-6-5-31Election law violations; investigation;...

2007-06-11T09:44:00.000-05:00

IC 3-6-5-31
Election law violations; investigation; action by board

Sec. 31. If a county election board determines that there is substantial reason to believe an election law violation has occurred, it shall expeditiously make an investigation. If in the judgment of the board, after affording due notice and an opportunity for a hearing, a person has engaged or is about to engage in an act or practice that constitutes or will constitute a violation of a provision of this title or of a rule or order issued under this title, the board shall take the action it considers appropriate under the circumstances, including referring the matter to the attorney general or the appropriate prosecuting attorney.

Election Boards, under Indiana law, are often the ...

2007-06-11T07:09:00.000-05:00

Election Boards, under Indiana law, are often the final arbiter of All Things Legal surrounding elections. It's a 3-person board steeped in politics...for almost 3 decade,s the Marion County Election Board might as well have been a voting member of the County Republican Central Committee. Harken back to some of the decisions Faye Mowery, John Sweezy & Co. made. Disgraceful.

And state officials rarely, if ever, challenge the authority of local election boards, although they have the statutory authority to do so.

The Allen County case, as you've outliend it, seems open-and-shut. Maybe the nexus lines of political opportunism, expediency and practical common sense, will finally merge at the point of logic.

What are the penalties, should the election board find Kelty violated campaign finance laws?

Do they have the authority to fine im heavily? Remove him from the ballot for excessive abuse? I'm doubting that las tone, but don't really knwo the implications here. He clearly skirted and violated the law.

But as you know, Gary, it's not up to Allen County...

2007-06-10T11:49:00.000-05:00

But as you know, Gary, it's not up to Allen County Republicans to "dump Kelty before it's too late." Kelty won the primary. So as long as Kelty doesn't move out of the city or die, there are two options: he voluntarily comes off the ballot by July 15, or he is convicted of a felony.

Anyone who thinks Kelty will volunteer to jump ship completely misunderstands him. This guy really wants to be mayor, and has shown that he'll do anything (include either commit a felony or hock his family's future, depending on how you look at it) to be mayor. He (with some justification) feels persecuted by the Republican leadership and there is no way he is going to quit. They can't make him (what are they going to do, not support his candidacy? they've already done that, and he won anyway).

Regardless of what the Allen County Election Board does at its 6/19 hearing, no one really thinks that it is possible that a felony conviction could happen by Nov. So Fort Wayne voters are faced with this choice:

1. Tom Henry, 20-year city councilman, small business owner, all-around good guy, or
2. Matt Kelty, extremist demogogue who may or may not be able to serve his term (that is, TERM OF OFFICE) if he is convicted of a felony after Nov.

Hmm......let's see.....