Politics

20-year-old candidate appeals decision on eligibility

By Bill Moss, Published: August 15, 2017

John Moore, the 20-year-old community college student who was ruled ineligible to run for the Hendersonville City Council because of his age, has reversed course and decided to appeal the decision to the N.C. Court of Appeals.

Moore, a 2015 Hendersonville High School graduate, said he had hired attorney John Noor of the Roberts & Stevens law firm in Asheville and file an appeal of the Board of Elections decision on July 20 that upheld Elections Director Beverly Cunningham's interpretation of state law on a candidates' age.

Although the city's charter sets no minimum age for election to the council, the state Constitution says that qualified voters who are 21 years old "shall be eligible for election by the people to office." The elections board said in a three-page order that Moore, who turned 20 on June 5, will not be 21 on Election Day as required under the state Constitution, which in 1971 added a minimum age of 21 to hold elective office.

Moore had declared his candidacy for the City Council in early June.