Electoral Board votes not to remove candidate from ballot

Published 6:09 pm Tuesday, August 16, 2022

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A candidate running for the Suffolk Borough seat on City Council will not be removed from the ballot, at least for now.

The city’s Electoral Board voted 2-1 during a special meeting Tuesday against removing Arthur Bredemeyer from the ballot. Bredemeyer is running against Planning Commissioner John Rector for the seat. Donald Goldberg, who currently represents the Suffolk Borough on council, opted not to run for re-election.

The issue, according to general registrar Burdette Lawrence, centers around a report of fraudulent signatures on Bredemeyer’s petition to earn a spot on the ballot.

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Lawrence said the registrar’s office received the report of fraudulent signatures July 7, and turned the matter over to the Commonwealth’s Attorney the following day.

The board met Aug. 9, she said, but called the special meeting to vote on whether Bredemeyer should remain on the ballot.

“I was asked my opinion regarding Mr. Bredemeyer’s removal by the board chairman (Brent Rowlands), and I stated that, in light of the numerous complaints, Mr. Bredemeyer should be removed,” Lawrence said.

Rowlands was the lone vote in favor of removing Bredemeyer from the ballot, with board Vice Chairman Edward Roettger and Secretary Issac Baker voting against removing Bredemeyer.

Following the vote, Lawrence said that “we then informed the public that we will seek legal counsel on how to proceed with removing Mr. Bredemeyer from the ballot.”

Bredemeyer unsuccessfully ran for mayor in 2012 and lost to Goldberg in 2018.