Town Sues Its Own Voters for 'Fatally Flawed' Election

If they had just elected a dog for mayor, none of this would have happened. At least that's what 61 registered voters in Montezuma, Colo., must be thinking after they received notice their own town is suing each and every one of them to appear in court to figure out what happened in last spring's "fatally flawed" mayoral election, reports the Denver Post. Among problems cited in the April Fools' Day vote are that there were more signatures than registered voters on candidate petitions and that people who simply owned a second home in town were allowed to vote and run for office, even though their "snow-clogged, unplowed driveways [are] proof they don't live there," one resident complains.

This particular case of Montezuma's revenge started after the town clerk was "hornswoggled" into taking on the job even though she had a full-time job already and reportedly wasn't prepared for her new position, notes the Post. Then she used a sewing machine to attach removable stubs to ballots to help keep voters' identities secret—except she apparently didn't notice voter ID numbers that still appeared on the ballots. "I have never seen anything like this," says a spokesman for the Colorado secretary of state regarding the unusual legal action. One of the voters points out the irony of the current situation. "It's fairly disturbing that the town is using our tax money to sue us," he says. "Now I'm paying someone to sue me." (More weird crimes stories.)