Correction: A previous version of this article misstated William Ellis' title. Ellis is the vice chair of the Monroe County Republican Party.
David Wolfe Bender, a Bloomington City Council candidate under investigation for possibly running under a false address, has won the nomination for the District 6 seat.
Bender’s victory was expected, as he was the only Democratic candidate running in District 6, but the future of his candidacy is subject to the Monroe County Election Board’s investigation.
The board will hold a hearing May 18 as part of its investigation. Once its review is complete, the board will decide whether to forward findings the county prosecutor. From there, Bender could be charged with a level 6 felony or a class A misdemeanor.
Bender came under investigation in early March after William Ellis, vice chair of the Monroe County Republican Party, submitted a complaint questioning Bender’s residency.
Ellis’s complaint was based on a Feb. 17 Indiana Daily Student article that cited an anonymous resident and neighbors who said Bender does live at 304 E. 16 th St., the District 6 address listed on his filing form.
Read more: Election board to investigate residency of District 6 city council candidate
By the time Ellis submitted his complaint, the deadline to request a candidate’s name be removed from the ballot had passed, and the only other person running for the District 6 seat — Benjamin Appleton — had withdrawn.
In early March, Bender’s previous attorney Manny Herceg wrote to the election board, saying Bender planned to withdraw his candidacy. Bender walked back on that statement nearly a month later and hired a new attorney, Alison Chopra, to represent him.
Bender said Herceg misrepresented him by saying the board’s investigation was politically motivated.
Bender also said he would consider meeting with board members on or before the May 18 hearing.
Read more: Election board won't subpoena city council candidate under investigation over residency
Bender declined an interview request from WFIU/WTIU News, writing, “I don’t want to opine or surmise on an ongoing matter.”
Board members have said they won’t subpoena Bender, as they believe doing so would delay their investigation.
If Bender does not run in the general election, the Monroe County Democratic Party can replace him by convention or caucus.
Bender is a junior at Indiana University. He is one of two IU students who ran for city council, along with Conner Wright in District 3.
