The chair of the Monroe County Democratic Party will not challenge the results of the May primary election amid an investigation into David Wolfe Bender, the District 6 city council candidate accused of running under a false address.
The Monroe County Clerk’s Office confirmed Monday it had not received a petition from party chair David Henry by Friday’s deadline. Indiana Code says if party chair wishes to object to the results of an election, they must submit a verified petition with the circuit court clerk within 17 days after the election.
The deadline for Henry to submit a petition came less than a day after the Monroe County Election Board voted to refer its investigation to the county prosecutor and the Indiana Attorney General.
Henry said the board’s referral is a reason why he did not file a petition.
“Given that the election board made several motions that move the question to consideration by the prosecutor’s office or the Attorney General’s office, I felt that there was sufficient scrutiny being made on the case so those agencies could move forward without additional requests from the party at this time,” Henry said.
The board began its investigation in early March after determining there was substantial reason to believe Bender had violated an election law. However, the prosecutor’s office determines whether criminal charges are filed.
The investigation was prompted by a complaint questioning whether Bender lived at the District 6 address listed on his candidate filing forms. The complaint followed a Feb. 17 Indiana Daily Student article citing an anonymous resident and neighbors who said Bender does not live there.
By the time the board received that complaint, the deadline to request a candidate’s name be removed from the ballot had passed. Bender was the only Democrat running at that point, so he won the nomination unopposed.
Henry said the party has several options for removing Bender before or after the November general election.
For instance, party leadership may encourage Bender to withdraw, support an independent candidate or simply let the legal process play out on its own.
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The party also could contest the results of the general election if Bender wins.
“Not only could we file that if it were determined over the summer that more evidence comes out that he’s not an eligible candidate — so could another party,” Henry said. “At this time, it doesn’t seem that there’s enough information really out there, other than more questions than answers.”
Henry said party leadership, including precinct chairs, would have to vote on supporting an independent candidate if that’s an avenue the party pursues.
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“There are many ways that this question could evolve or close over the next few weeks,” Henry said. “We don’t have a full answer here today, but we are just a step in a process where we all figure out what choices are available to the party, to the voters and to the candidate as we sort through the question that’s been posed about the eligibility that he has.”
If Bender does not run in the general election and there is a vacancy on the ballot, the party can replace him by convention or caucus.
