Galloway falls short of required signatures

Friday, July 1, 2016

The race for District 3 county commissioner became less crowded Friday with the announcement that independent Wayne Galloway will not appear on the Nov. 8 ballot.

Putnam County Clerk Heather Gilbert told the Banner Graphic Friday afternoon that Galloway's petitions fell seven certified signatures short of the 128 required to appear on the ballot.

Galloway's removal brings the race back to a two-candidate affair, with Republican incumbent Don Walton facing Democrat Nancy Wells.

Galloway turned in his paperwork shortly before the noon deadline on Thursday with 144 signatures on the petitions.

However, when Voter Registration Clerk Stacia Hathaway began the process of certifying the signatures, 23 were disqualified.

Hathaway found that nine people wrote down an address other than their registered address with the Voter Registration Office, seven were not registered voters, five were registered in other counties and two listed post office boxes rather than physical addresses.

This left Galloway with only 121 certified signatures.

The 128 requirement is the result of a formula prescribed by the state. A candidate must collect the equivalent of two percent of the total votes cast in the last race for Indiana secretary of state.

To be sure, Hathaway had Gilbert double check her work. They then called the state for further confirmation.

Gilbert and Hathaway said Galloway's problem was exacerbated by the last-minute nature of his filing. If he had turned it in a few days in advance, he would have had time to collect more signatures.

The only other contested county race to appear on the Nov. 8 general election ballot is Republican Coroner Dave Brown against challenger Wally Steele.