Any Kansas City votes for Theresa Garza Ruiz won’t be counted

Even though Theresa Garza Ruiz withdrew last week as a Kansas City Council candidate, her name will appear on the city’s primary ballots because they had already been printed.

So a Jackson County judge ordered election boards Tuesday to post notices at each Kansas City polling location for the April 7 primary election and ensure that any votes for Garza Ruiz won’t be counted.

Jackson County Circuit Judge Joel Fahnestock ruled Tuesday that Garza Ruiz has been disqualified as a candidate for the 5th District at-large seat. The ruling came in a lawsuit filed by another 5th District at-large candidate, Lee Barnes Jr., who raised questions about whether Garza Ruiz met the two-year residency requirement for City Council candidates under the city charter.

Garza Ruiz presented documents when she filed to run in Kansas City that purported to show she had moved to a Kansas City address in March 2013. But Jackson County election board records showed she voted in Blue Springs on April 2, 2013. Other court documents showed her cars registered in Blue Springs.

Barnes’ attorney has filed a motion for sanctions against Garza Ruiz, but the judge has not yet ruled on that motion.

This story was originally published February 24, 2015 at 5:41 PM with the headline "Any Kansas City votes for Theresa Garza Ruiz won’t be counted."