Attorney Zachary Vargo spoke on claims against City Clerk and Election Commissioner Gladys Oyola-Lopez from City Councilor Justin Hurst at a press conference on July 23.
Reminder Publishing photo by Peter Tuohy
SPRINGFIELD — Attorney Zachary Vargo addressed accusations of unethical conduct made by Springfield City Councilor Justin Hurst against City Clerk and Election Commissioner Gladys Oyola-Lopez outside of Hampden County Superior Court on July 23.
Vargo – representing Oyola-Lopez – claimed Hurst has engaged in “retaliatory actions” and “public harassment” against Oyola-Lopez for her cooperation with investigatory agencies.
Oyola-Lopez reported voter complaints to authorities in October 2023 that claimed the Hurst campaign allegedly offered compensation in exchange for votes during his 2023 mayoral race, which Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell’s office is currently investigating. Hurst ultimately lost the election to Mayor Domenic Sarno.
She also wrote in a June 30 letter to Springfield Human Resources Director William Mahoney that the situation has caused “mental anguish, loss of appetite and sleep and concern regarding my ability to safely and effectively perform my official duties.”
She requested that the city conduct a prompt, thorough, independent and impartial investigation and to “take reasonable immediate interim measures to prevent further harassment or retaliation during the investigation.”
“My client has never taken a position with respect to the veracity of these accusations against Mr. Hurst, but has, in her capacity as election commissioner, cooperated with investigations concerning these allegations, as she’s required by law to do,” Vargo said. “It’s our opinion, that Ms. Oyola-Lopez’s cooperation in this regard has caused Mr. Hurst to engage in retaliatory actions that have tarnished her good character, threatened her livelihood and subjected her to unfounded criticism … We’re standing here today to demand Mr. Hurst to stop harassing my client. As the election commissioner, my client’s primary function is to ensure that elections are fair, free and administered appropriately.”
Vargo added that Mr. Hurst held a press conference in 2023, alleging that Oyola-Lopez and City Solicitor Stephen Buoniconti were involved in a “political setup” to help Sarno win reelection.
“Mr. Hurst stated that he believed my client exercised bias against him, and she violated her duty to maintain neutrality in the conduction of the elections,” Vargo said. “She was simply doing her job and reporting suspected fraud as law requires. Mr. Hurst continues to cast widespread suspicion and doubt on her exemplary reputation. Mr. Hurst contends that he is just doing his job as a city councilor and committing oversight. This is not oversight, this is harassment.”
Vargo said Hurst resumed his “campaign of harassment” after rejoining the City Council in 2025, accusing Oyola-Lopez of vote manipulation, tampering and corruption based on a perceived difference in vote tallies on a website the night of the 2023 mayoral election.
“He repeatedly and publicly described these discrepancies, calling them, quote, ‘manipulation,’ and called for a state investigation” Vargo said. “In response to the allegations, the elections office immediately explained to the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s office that there was no vote manipulation, and Mr. Hurst was erroneous in his comparison of the two vote tallies. He had been comparing a website that had not been updated since the election night to the final certified election results. There was no vote tampering, it was just a website that hadn’t been updated.”
Vargo said the secretary of the commonwealth’s office confirmed the election office provided a satisfactory response with no irregularities, fraud and no further need to investigate, and Hurst continued to discuss vote manipulation.
At the June 22 City Council meeting, Hurst raised questions about Oyola-Lopez’s involvement with a city-owned property. Oyola-Lopez is one of two listed managers of Brightwood Elderly Living Loving Assistance, owned by MPZ NNCC Plainfield Street LLC — an applicant and the preferred developer to turn Brightwood Elementary School into affordable housing.
She is also president of the New North Citizens Council Board of Directors, working with the city on the project, and Hurst claimed the organization would “benefit directly” from the redevelopment. He added that the city clerk is involved in creating the City Council agenda and that Oyola-Lopez is able to exert influence on the matter.
The City Council unanimously voted to refer MPZ NNCC Plainfield Street LLC’s $100,000 funding request for further review and legal opinion on June 22.
Hurst characterized Oyola-Lopez’s actions as “potential ethics violations, conflicts of interest, self-dealing, disclosure failures and other potential legal concerns” in the legal opinion request to Buoniconti on June 25.
Buoniconti responded on July 6, stating that his office could not issue an opinion due to the Attorney General’s investigation and because Hurst’s request might be seen as an “intimidation tactic against a witness in the case.”
Vargo said that Oyola-Lopez’s role with the board of directors has always been unpaid and voluntary, and that the City Council plans to vote on authorizing an outside legal opinion at the July 27 meeting.
Hurst told Reminder Publishing that he will “continue to do what the residents of Springfield have elected me to do.”
“Looking at the facts objectively and analyzing the issues that matter to our residents and the taxpayers of Springfield will always be a priority,” Hurst said. “Our city clerk, who works for the City Council, wants us to approve $100,000 in city funds for a company that she has a financial interest in without disclosing her interest to the body. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to deduce that something is wrong with that, which is why the City Council unanimously sent this item to committee. Asking for a legal opinion from our attorney in my official capacity as a city councilor on behalf of the entire council can’t possibly amount to harassment and the sad part is her attorney knows it.”
Sarno said in a July 24 press release that Oyola-Lopez is an “exemplary city employee, a trusted cabinet head and one of the hardest working individuals I know who deeply cares for our city and community.”
“She has a proven track record that is above reproach and her integrity is second-to-none,” Sarno said in the release. “I have the utmost confidence in our City Clerk and Election Commissioner Gladys Oyola-Lopez. It is clear to me that this is nothing more than Mr. Hurst targeting our esteemed city clerk and election commissioner because she simply did her duty in reporting the actions of he and his committee during the 2023 mayoral election. It is common knowledge that Mr. Hurst and his committee are still under investigation by the Attorney General’s office for alleged misconduct where they were taking advantage of our very vulnerable and homeless population by promising them $10 and a fish sandwich to a vote for Mr. Hurst.”
