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JUSTICE DEPARTMENT SUES CICERO, ILLINOIS

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Justice Department today sued the town of Cicero, Illinois alleging that its board of trustees and town president voted to change a requirement that candidates for town office reside in the town for 18 months, instead of 12 months in an effort to keep Hispanic candidates off the ballot.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Chicago, alleges that the elected officials of the town of Cicero, in Cook County, violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act by specifically targeting two potential Hispanic candidates in order to disqualify them from running in the 2001 election for town president. The new residency requirement is scheduled for approval by a referendum vote in the

March 21, 2000 primary election. In a motion, filed together with the lawsuit, the Justice Department asked for an injunction against the referendum vote.

"The Voting Rights Act guarantees that all citizens have the right to fully participate in the democratic process," said Bill Lann Lee, Acting Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights. "We hope that today's lawsuit will result in all of Cicero's citizens having a fair opportunity to participate in town government by running for office and voting for candidates of their choice."

The Hispanic population of Cicero, located southwest of Chicago, has risen dramatically since 1980. In 1997, the Justice Department filed a consent decree with the town settling claims of discrimination in town housing policies.

The injunction sought in today's lawsuit would maintain the current 12-month residency requirement for the town's upcoming 2001 elections.

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