Five candidates from cities across San Bernardino County got the shock of their lives this month when the county’s Registrar of Voters informed them they had not qualified for the November ballot after all. The candidates were mistakenly led to believe they had qualified thanks to a clerical error. They have until Aug. 29 to challenge the findings and request action from the courts.
The candidates are Rachel Arzu in Highland City Council District 3, Ted Bohanon in Apple Valley Town Council District 1, Jose Nikyar in Ontario City Council District 4, Ashley Stickler in Rancho Cucamonga City Council District 1, and Joshua Augustus, who is running for Mayor of Rialto.
Three more candidates were initially affected by the error, but they were given until Aug. 14 to submit additional signatures to qualify. That’s because of an extended filing deadline in races where incumbents are not running for re-election.
The San Bernardino County Registrar notified multiple city clerks about the error on Aug. 10 after additional audits uncovered the mistake. The ROV says it is working closely with the cities to address the mishap.
According to the ROV, additional audits will be conducted as part of the petition signature review processes going forward to prevent a similar situation.