Dillon's Cape council petition short two signatures

Ellen Dillon's nomination petition to earn her a spot on the Cape Girardeau City Council ballot next year was two signatures short of election requirements, the county clerk's office said Thursday.

Dillon, who hopes to claim the Ward 3 seat being vacated by Debra Tracy, originally turned in 52 signatures, but four were disqualified, according to county elections director Joey Keys.

Two of the signatures came from residents who were not registered voters and two came from voters outside Ward 3, which made them ineligible to sign, Keys said.

Dillon said Thursday she has already collected five more signatures that would put her over the 50 required to come from within the ward. With the filing period set to close Tuesday, Dillon said she intends to turn those in to the city clerk's office Friday or next week. She attempted to Thursday, she said, but city clerk Gayle Conrad was not available to notarize the petition.

Cape Girardeau County Clerk Kara Clark Summers typically certifies those signatures, although she has recused herself from this task because her husband, Trent Summers, is also running for the Ward 3 seat.

If Dillon's petition is certified, she will square off against Trent Summers, an account executive with Red Letter Communications in the April 3 election. Summers' signatures have already been verified, as have council incumbents Mark Lanzotti and Loretta Schneider.

Lanzotti represents Ward 5 and Schneider represents Ward 4. If no one files for those ward seats by the Nov. 22 filing deadline, those two will run unopposed.