O'Shea v. Scherban

Citations

• 339 Conn. 775

Syllabus

The plaintiff, who had run in the November, 2020 election to fill a vacant position on the Board of Education of the City of Stamford, appealed to the trial court, seeking to compel the defendants, including various city election officials, to seat her as a member of the board after she received the most votes for the position and the city determined that the vacant position had been included on the election ballot in error and declined to credit the election result. Pursuant to the applicable provisions (§ C1-80-2 (b) and (c)) of the Stamford charter, the city's Board of Representatives appointed the defendant H in February, 2020, to fill the vacancy until the next biennial election in November, 2021. In October, 2020, after ballots for the November, 2020 election were printed and sent to absentee voters, and the plaintiff and other individu- als had registered as write-in candidates, the city discovered that the vacant board position had been placed on the ballot in error. City officials then met with the plaintiff and the other candidates to discuss the city's determination that, under § C1-80-2, biennial elections are held in odd 776 NOVEMBER, 2021 339 Conn. 775 O'Shea v. Scherban numbered years rather than in even numbered years and that H had been appointed to fill the vacant position until the next biennial election. The city further determined that it would be confusing to voters to print and distribute corrected ballots, given the short period of time before the election, and, thus, the election for the vacant position proceeded. The trial court rendered judgment for the defendants, concluding that the city charter unambiguously provided that H's appointment by the Board of Representatives placed her in the vacant position until the next biennial election in 2021. On appeal, the plaintiff claimed that the city was required to hold an election in November, 2020, to fill the vacancy on the board for the balance of the vacated term. She asserted, inter alia, t