Voters of city filed petition for judicial review of ballot question that was to be included on general election ballot and that asked voters whether to amend certain provision of city’s charter, and voters subsequently amended the petition to add a claim under statute allowing registered voters to seek judicial relief from any act or omission relating to an election.
After a hearing, the Circuit Court determined that ballot question violated state constitution in that it was not proper charter material and violated statute governing content of ballots. City’s mayor and city council were allowed to intervene, and then the State Board of Elections, mayor, and city council appealed.
The Supreme Court held that statute providing for judicial review of the content and arrangement of a ballot, or to correct any administrative error on the ballot, was not a proper mechanism to challenge either whether proposed charter amendment was proper charter material or whether the language of proposed charter amendment comported with statute requiring a ballot to be easily understandable by voters.