Losing East St. Louis mayoral candidates allege vote fraud in April 4 election

The incumbent and a local activist who each lost their run for East St. Louis mayor in the April 4 election recently shared allegations of vote fraud with the East St. Louis Board of Election Commissioners, calling the integrity of the election into question.

Mayor Robert Eastern III, who lost his bid for a second term, and candidate Marie Franklin, a former organizer with the United Congregations of Metro-East, sent letters to the commissioners alleging payments for votes and ballots cast by people in other voters’ names. They asked the board to postpone certifying the election results until the allegations could be investigated.

But commissioners Joseph McCaskill, Darlene Morgan and David King voted Thursday to accept the election results, making the vote counts that show sitting city councilman Charles Powell III was elected the new mayor official.

The board, through its attorney Richard Sturgeon, said it had no power to investigate fraud and referred those with criminal allegations instead to the police, state’s attorney or U.S. attorney.

Judge Andrew J. Gleeson, chief judge of the 20th Judicial Circuit, said in an interview with the BND there is a process for filing election complaints.

Before results are certified, candidates should submit complaints about election irregularities to the office of St. Clair County State’s Attorney. After election results are certified, as they have been in East St. Louis, candidates have the right to file an election objection with the courts, he said.

“We have a process,” Gleeson said in a BND interview. “ If Miss Franklin files an election objection and whatever evidence she has is material to the election results, the court would make a determination on whether it was election fraud.”

The results of an election have to be certified by the elections board before someone can contest them in court.

Gleeson oversees the election board. The commissioners take the election results and certify them. Then, Gleeson signs off on them.

Gleason said anyone who has evidence of election irregularities that otherwise could have affected the results has the right to petition the court for that relief.

Gleeson said a certification is not stopped because somebody makes an allegation.

Franklin shares complaints at City Hall

Franklin and six of her supporters gathered Thursday at City Hall to publicly voice their concerns to the board. They also spoke to reporters during a news conference before the meeting started. At least four of them said they had personally witnessed issues with the election, including Franklin.

Franklin said she was concerned about the results in part because she observed provisional and absentee ballot counting this week. Provisional ballots are ones that were questioned at a polling place.

Franklin said she urged vote counters to check the signatures, and 19 of about 30 ballots in one precinct alone had signatures that did not match the official signature on record. Those 19 ballots were thrown out, according to Franklin.

“As a candidate I’m disappointed, but as a citizen I am livid that this is happening — that our voices are being stifled by people who have taken advantage of this process not being tight and have cheated, you know? I mean there’s just no other way to put it. They have cheated. And they’ve been doing it for years,” Franklin said at the news conference. She did not name specific individuals she believes are involved.

Eastern wrote in his letter that he heard reports of fraud, including that someone attempted to vote in the name of the executive director of the Board of Election, Kandrise Mosby.

Commissioner David King responded to the complaints of fraud during the board meeting.

“I’ve been on this board only a short time. Anytime that anything has been brought here, we’ve been in consultation with the lawyer. We try to follow the law. No one on this board is saying you don’t have some legitimate complaints about the conduct of what went on in the election,” King said. “But the process has been explained. We can’t initiate these investigations.”

From the late 80s to the late 90s, Franklin worked for the Illinois State Police and made history as the first Black female trooper in the patrol division for southern Illinois. The April 4 election was her first time running for public office.

Eastern, a former city councilman, was elected mayor in 2019.

He said in BND interview Thursday that he agrees that the process of counting provisional and absentee votes needs to be updated. He declined to comment further on the allegations of voting improprieties and said his focus now is on making the transition to the new administration as smooth as possible.

“I was blessed to lead the city for four years and I am forever grateful for that opportunity,”’ he said. “I thank my staff, the team that helped get me elected and the residents who supported my vision. It takes a team effort.”

Powell, the mayor-elect, could not immediately be reached for comment for this article.

Copies of Franklin’s and Eastern’s letters to the commissioners were provided to the BND.

Eastern’s letter to the board includes a “cc” at the end listing other officials, including St. Clair County State’s Attorney James Gomric. Franklin said she also sent a copy of her letter to Gomric.

A spokesperson for Gomric’s office said they received Franklin’s letter at 12:57 p.m. Thursday, but have not received a letter from Eastern. They declined to comment further on the allegations.

Witnesses recount election issues in East St. Louis

Poll watcher Cheryl Sommer, East St. Louis resident Tasha Brewer and local activist Zach Chike joined Franklin at City Hall to recount the issues they say they witnessed during the election:

• Sommer said she watched three people who showed up to vote on Election Day learn their ballots had already been turned in without their knowledge. Sommer said she also saw a poll watcher fill out a ballot for someone who requested assistance without consulting them about their choices.

• Brewer said she saw people outside of her polling place in Precinct 15 passing out a piece of paper listing candidates with money attached to the back in an attempt to pay for votes.

• Chike said that he heard an election judge tell a voter, “I’m trying to get you paid,” and that he saw someone bring a mail-in ballot that was not sealed correctly to City Hall.

During the board of commissioners meeting, Kelvin Ellis, who identified himself as a reverend, told the board he called East St. Louis police on Election Day because of “irregularities and attempts at fraudulent votes” in Precinct 8. He did not offer more specific information during the meeting and declined to speak to the BND.

In Precinct 19, Ellis said he is requesting a “forensic examination” of the results and an investigation of a specific individual who was there by the state’s attorney’s office.

That individual has a long history of voter intimidation, paying for votes and forging signatures, according to Ellis.

Marie Franklin Letter to Election Commissioners by jeffrycouch on Scribd