Suburban candidates
fill out field as filing deadline passes
Mayors in some south and southwest suburbs could see challengers, including familiar faces that they’ve squared off against in the past, in the April 6 municipal elections.
Monday was the deadline for filing nominating papers, but how the final ballots look could change depending on challenges yet to be filed to individual candidates’ paperwork.
For example, in Calumet City, state Rep. Thaddeus Jones, D-Calumet City, said he planned to appeal an electoral board ruling that removed him from the
Blue Island residents will choose a mayor, city clerk, treasurer and seven aldermen, a change from past elections. In March, voters overwhelmingly approved a measure to cut the number of aldermen in half, ending a century of two aldermen in each of seven wards. That means all seven aldermanic seats are up for grabs in April.
Mayor Domingo Vargas is running as an independent for a third term as mayor, and he is challenged by Ald. Fred Bilotto and city Clerk Randy Heuser, who organized a petition drive that led to the referendum reducing the number of aldermen.
Running with Bilotto on the United Blue Island ticket are 6th Ward. Ald. Rae Ann Cantelo-Zylman running for clerk, and former Ald. Jairo Frausto for treasurer.
Aldermanic candidates on the United Blue Island ticket are 1st Ward Ald. Annette Alexander, 3rd Ward Ald. Nancy Rita and 6th Ward Ald. Candace Carr. New candidates are Luis Montoya in Ward 2, Reyna Alvarado in Ward 4, Vera Bettis in Ward 5 and Judy Tovar Becerra in Ward 7.
Heuser is heading the Moving Blue Island Forward ticket and running with Charlette Mitchell-Brown for clerk and 4th Ward Ald. Tom Hawley running for treasurer.
Blue Island Forward isn’t running a candidate for alderman in the 1st Ward and 4th Ward Ald. Bill Fahrenwald is seeking reelection. Other candidates on the ticket are Luis Esporaza Jr. in Ward 2, Rich Webster in Ward 3, Gabe McGee in Ward 5, Lauren Trinidad in Ward 6 and Josh Roll in the Ward 7th.
Carol DiPace-Greene is running as an independent for city clerk while 1st Ward Ald. Dexter Johnson and 7th Ward Ald. Alan Stevo are also seeking reelection as independents.
City treasurer Carmine Bilotto, father of the alderman running for mayor, is not seeking another term. He has been treasurer since 2009 and before that served a four-year term as alderman.
In Crestwood, Mayor Lou Presta, who has
Running with him are Clerk Catherine Johnson and Trustee Anthony Benigno, as well as trustee candidates Frank Caldario and Kenneth Klein.
Former village Trustee John Toscas, who mounted an unsuccessful campaign for mayor in 2013 against Presta, is running with clerk candidate Stephen Laude and trustee candidates Gary Carr, Erica Gray and Robert Tymm.
Incumbent Trustees Michael McInerney and William Pieroth did not file petitions seeking reelection.
James Sexton, first elected Evergreen Park’s mayor in the spring of 2001,
She will head the ticket with village Clerk Cathy Aparo and Trustees Norm Anderson, Carol Kyle and Mark Phelan.
Also filing for mayor is Shawn Good, and running for trustee are Cesar Salazar and Darryl Smith.
Flossmoor Mayor Paul Braun is not seeking reelection and vying to take his place are Lakshmi Emory and Michelle Nelson.
Brian Driscoll and Joni Bradley-Scott are seeking reelection to four-year terms as trustees in Flossmoor, while George Lofton is running for an unexpired two-year term. He had been appointed after Trustee Gyata Kimmons stepped down recently.
Also filing for four-year trustee seats are Gary Daggett and David Walano.
In Frankfort, where
Filing for reelection is Trustee Eugene Savaria, but other candidates for the three trustee seats are village Clerk Brian Feehery, and Michael Leddin, Daniel Rossi and Tamara Schaeffer. Katie Schubert is running for village clerk.
In Markham, first-term Mayor Roger Agpawa is running again but faces three challengers.
Agpawa is running as a Democrat and three challengers running as independents are city Clerk Jennifer Coles, Perry Browley and Kenneth “Mojo” Muldrow Jr.
Agpawa won election in 2017 but was unable to take office for 18 months while he fought to resolve issues about his ineligibility to serve because of a 1999 federal felony conviction. In 2017, Browley was a mayoral candidate on the ballot and Muldrow ran as a write-in candidate.
Leslie Trimuel is running as a Democrat for clerk and will face independent Gladys “Chub” Ambers-Martin. Incumbent Treasurer Belinda Richardson is running unopposed.
Matteson Mayor Sheila Chalmers-Currin, heading the Matteson Moving Forward ticket, is seeking a second term but will face a challenger, independent Muhaymin Muhammad.
Running with Chalmers-Currin are Clerk Yumeka Brown and Trustees Juanita Hardin and Adam Shorter, along with trustee candidate Donald Meeks.
Oak Forest Mayor Henry Kuspa, first elected in 2009, is running unopposed as are 1st Ward Ald. Richard Simon and 6th Ward Ald. James Hortsman. But in the 4th Ward, Ald. Paul Selman is challenged by John Harris. Clerk John Janozik is challenged by Robert Shaw.
Ericka Vetter is running for treasurer to replace JoAnn Kelly, who is stepping down after 25 years in Oak Forest government as an alderman, mayor and treasurer.
In Oak Lawn, incumbent
The town of more than 55,000 residents is divided into six trustee districts.
Running with Vorderer for trustee are James “Jamie” Pembroke in the fourth district, and incumbent Trustees Alex Olejniczak and Thomas Phelan seeking reelection in the second and sixth districts, respectively.
Clerk Jane Quinlan is not running and the Oak Lawn First party has slated Claire Henning to replace her.
Olympia Fields’ first-term Mayor Sterling Burke is facing two challengers from the Village Board. Trustees Cassandra Matz and Desiree Watkins are both seeking the job.
Filing for three four-year terms as trustee are incumbents Kelvin Oliver and Janice Thomas, along with Victor Blackwell and Howard White.
Orland Park’s spring election
Heading the People Over Politics ticket, Pekau is running with Sean Kampas, Joni Radaszewski and Brian Riordan as candidates for trustee and Constantine “Gus” Lekas as candidate for clerk.
Defeated for a seventh term in the 2017 race against Pekau, McLaughlin tops the One Orland Party slate. The ticket includes Amy Burrell, Chris Kasmer and Derek Rinaldi as trustee candidates for three open seats, and Patrick O’Sullivan as candidate for village clerk.
Palos Hills Mayor Gerald Bennett, first elected in 1981, is being challenged by Sandy Szczygiel while Clerk Kenneth Mulderink is running unopposed. Treasurer Kenneth Nolan faces challenger Damian Ciszek.
The city has five wards with two aldermen representing each, and only one alderman from each ward is up for election in each cycle.
First Ward Ald. Michael Price is being challenged by Marzena Jurczak-Konopczak, and 2nd Ward Ald. Mark Brachman faces Jack Dunajczan. Third Ward Ald. A.J. Pasek is challenged by Malgorzata Sztachelski, 4th Ward Ald. Phillip Abed is being challenged by Anna Biedrzycki and 5th Ward Ald. Donna O’Connell will face Anna Marek.
In Tinley Park, Trustee Michael Glotz and former trustee Kevin Suggs are running for mayor, following incumbent
Running with Glotz on the Our Tinley Park ticket are Clerk Kristin Thirion and Trustee William Brady along with trustee candidates Dennis Mahoney and Colleen Sullivan.
Suggs became Tinley Park’s first Black trustee when he was appointed in May 2016 to fill a vacancy on the Village Board. He also serves as Bremen Township Republican Committeeman but did not win election in 2017 to a full term on the board.
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