Candidate for town council brought action against town clerk and others, claiming that clerk misapplied newly passed revisions to town’s charter to determine the election results.
The Superior Court granted clerk’s motion to dismiss for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. Candidate appealed.
The Supreme Court held that clerk’s decision to apply revised provisions of town’s charter to determine the composition of the town council was a “ruling of an election official” within meaning of election contest statutes.
Town clerk’s decision to apply revised provisions of town’s charter, which were approved in municipal election, rather than the provisions purportedly in effect on the day of the election to determine the composition of the town council from that same municipal election was a “ruling of an election official” within the meaning of statutes authorizing an elector or candidate aggrieved by such a ruling to bring an election contest, even though decision was made after the balloting and ballot tabulation; decision required clerk to apply minority representation statute and statute requiring reporting of winners to the Secretary of State and went to the question of who won the town council election.