Cook County Sheriff race: Dolton cop suing over being removed from ballot

COOK COUNTY - A former candidate for Cook County Sheriff filed a federal civil rights lawsuit, claiming she was wrongfully bumped from the ballot.

Dolton Police Officer LaTonya Ruffin was disqualified ahead of the June 28 primary after incumbent Sheriff Tom Dart's campaign objected to her filing to run under a last name different from that of her voter registration.

"This lawsuit essentially says there has been an attack on democracy, the voters are being denied a choice, an opportunity to choose between candidates — and that is anti-democratic," said the attorney for Ruffin.

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Another female challenger was removed after Dart's campaign questioned her eligibility. She's not included in the lawsuit.

FOX 32 Chicago has reached out to Dart and the Cook County Electoral Board for comment. Dart released the following statement:

"The law is abundantly clear and it was fairly applied in this situation by the electoral board and the judiciary. However, the law was not followed by this candidate and that is the only reason authorities disqualified her from running for sheriff in the Democratic Primary."