Nominating petitions for  next spring’s school board election in Evanston/Skokie School District 65 can be filed with the school board secretary starting Monday, Dec. 17.

Board Secretary Pat Markham says petitions can be filed from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday that week. After a holiday break, the last day for filing will be Wednesday, Dec. 26, when the office will be open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Candidate names appear on the election ballot in the order in which nominating papers are received in the board secretary’s office. If necessary, a lottery to determine ballot order for simultaneous filers will occur at 10 a.m. on Jan. 2 in the office of the board secretary.

Four full-term seats of the seven-member board of education will be filled at the April 9 election. Candidates elected will serve four-year terms expiring in April 2017.

To be eligible to serve, a school board candidate must be, on the date of election, a citizen of the United States, at least 18 years old, a registered voter, and a resident of the State of Illinois and Evanston/Skokie School District 65 for at least one year preceding the election.

Elections are non-partisan and board candidates do not indicate a political party affiliation. Candidates should be aware of financial conflict-of-interest limitations in state law. Nominating papers may be filed by the candidate in person, by mail, or by an agent. They consist of the following:

  • Nominating petitions signed by at least 50 voters residing within the district. Petitions must be securely bound together with pages numbered consecutively, and each page must carry the notarized signature of the petition circulator.
  • Statement of candidacy, which includes a request that the candidate’s name be placed on the official ballot, the address of the candidate, the office sought, and a statement that the candidate is qualified for the office and has filed (or will file before the petition filing period) a statement of economic interests as required by the Illinois Governmental Ethics Act.
  • A receipt from the Cook County Clerk showing that the candidate has filed the statement of economic interests as noted above.
  • A loyalty oath, which is optional. A candidate may choose to file it or not.

Questions can be emailed to Markham at markhamp@district65.net.

Bill Smith is the editor and publisher of Evanston Now.

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