Haynes v. Wells

Appellant Norreese Haynes appeals the trial court’s ruling that because Haynes was not an eligible candidate for the fifth district seat on the Clayton County School Board, his name must be removed from the November 2000 election ballot. For the reasons that follow, we affirm.

Haynes and appellee Barbara Wells were the only two people to file and qualify for the Democratic primary for the fifth district seat on the Clayton County School Board, and were the only two people on the ballot at the primary election held on July 18, 2000. Haynes received the majority of votes, but Wells filed an election contest, contending that Haynes was not eligible to vote in the fifth district at the time of the primary, and thus was ineligible to run for the fifth district seat on the school board. A hearing was held on the challenge on September 18, 2000, and the trial court issued a judgment on September 20, 2000, ruling that Haynes was not an eligible voter of the fifth district at the time of the primary and was therefore ineligible to run for the fifth district seat.1 Very shortly thereafter, Haynes moved for an expedited appeal in this Court, which was granted.