Effect of Residency Challenge

I rather think that the challenge to Mike Henry's residency early in the campaign only helped his successful campaign. Whether those who brought the challenge or not had a strong legal case, it remained that, for the average voter, if you lived in Carbondale for the required period of time, you were a resident, no matter where your utility bill might be sent.

Also, the challenge received extensive coverage in the local papers and on tv, both when the charges were filed and when the electoral commission dismissed them, giving the Henry campaign two shots of publicity, while providing comparatively little mention during the same period of his opponent Jane Adams.