Will County Executive Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant and incumbent Democrats for countywide offices appear to be reelected Tuesday, while the Will County Board is likely to remain an 11 to 11 tie.

Republican Annette Parker, a candidate for county clerk, appears to have won her seat with 50.6% of the vote over Democrat Michelle Stiff, of Joliet, with 49.4%. It was the only countywide race without an incumbent, due to the resignation this summer of Lauren Staley Ferry. Both parties nominated candidates to finish Staley Ferry’s term.

Parker, of Crest Hill, is a Will County Board member, president of the Forest Preserve District Board and executive director of the Lockport Chamber of Commerce.

Parker said Wednesday she wants to take politics out of the clerk’s office and to improve transparency so people are comfortable with the election process.

“The key word is perception,” Parker said. “It’s not that they haven’t been transparent. I don’t think people are 100% comfortable or confident.”

Parker said she is a moderate Republican who works well with both Republicans and Democrats, adding she thinks she received bipartisan support. Recently, Parker initiated a compromise on the community mental health board levy that pleased members of both parties.

Parker, who represents the board’s 5th District, will be replaced by another Republican from the district.

Election results are unofficial until provisional ballots and all remaining vote-by-mail ballots postmarked by Election Day are counted Nov. 19, with official results reported on Nov. 26. Winning candidates assume office Dec. 2.

County executive

Incumbent Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant, a Shorewood Democrat seeking a second term, had 51% of the unofficial vote while Republican candidate Charles “Chuck” Maher of Naperville had 49% of the vote according to unofficial results.

Bertino-Tarrant said she received a message from Maher congratulating her, and she thanked her supporters and residents for their trust.

“This is always very humbling,” she said. “I’m extremely grateful for the support.”

Bertino-Tarrant said the Democratic candidates reelected are hard workers, and said she plans to continue her work to improve public safety, ensure the county remains the best in the state for job creation and collaborate with the Veterans Assistance Commission to bring a new veterans-centric campus to Joliet.

Coroner

Incumbent Coroner Laurie Summers, a registered nurse and former Will County Board member, had nearly 52% of the unofficial total while Republican Robert Enright, a licensed funeral home director and embalmer and Plainfield Township collector, had 48%.

Summers said her office helped deliver a new state-of-the-art county morgue and coroner’s office on time and on budget and has solved five cold cases that returned the remains to their families. She said her office works with a variety of county departments, including the sheriff’s and state’s attorney’s offices and emergency personnel.

Circuit court clerk

Incumbent Circuit Court Clerk Andrea Lynn Chasteen, a Frankfort Democrat, had 50.43% of the unofficial vote while challenger Republican Diane Harris of Joliet, had 49.57% with all precincts counted.

Chasteen has 30 years experience in the court system in seeking her third term. She said many ideas she implemented help people navigate the court system. She is also digitizing old court records and piloting a program to use artificial intelligence to review pleadings in civil and family cases.

Recorder of deeds

Incumbent Recorder of Deeds Karen Stukel, a Democrat from Channahon, seeking her fifth term, was challenged by Will County Board member Raquel Mitchell, a Republican from Bolingbrook.

Stukel had 52.56% of the unofficial vote total while Mitchell had 47.44%.

Stukel is the vice president of the Illinois Association of County Officials and has been past president of the Illinois Association of County Clerks and Recorders. Stukel is also in the process of starting an Illinois chapter for the Property Records Industry Association.

Auditor

Democrat Auditor Kevin “Duffy” Blackburn, a certified public accountant who also holds certifications as an information systems auditor and fraud examiner, received nearly 52% of the unofficial vote total in seeking his fifth term against Republican James Buiter, the Crete Township clerk.

Blackburn, of Joliet, said the county has the highest bond rating by S&P and Moody’s and the county is in a sound financial position.

County board

Residents in areas of Wheatland, DuPage, Joliet and Troy townships cast ballots for county board districts. Six seats in three districts were on the ballot for four-year terms, which had the potential to tip the political balance on the board.

Since 2022, the board has been split evenly with 11 Democrats and 11 Republicans with Bertino-Tarrant breaking ties. It is anticipated it will still remain an 11 to 11 tie. But Bertino-Tarrant said when the county board reorganizes next month, there will likely be a Democrat chosen as board chair, the legislative leader of the board.

When the newly elected board was sworn in in 2022, board member Denise E. Winfrey had to leave the meeting early, so Democrats did not have enough votes to select the chair. For two years, the board has been led by Judy Ogalla, a Monee Republican.

The board districts have staggered two- or four-year terms based on a random draw. This election voters chose representatives for Districts 6, 7 and 10 that includes areas of Joliet, Plainfield, Shorewood, Aurora and Naperville.

In District 6, Democratic candidates Winfrey, an incumbent and past president of the National Association of Counties, and former board member Herbert Brooks Jr. were leading Republican Enrique Ruiz.

Ballots show 46% for Winfrey, 30% for Brooks and 23% for Ruiz in the Joliet district with all precincts reporting.

In District 7, which includes portions of Joliet, Plainfield and Shorewood, Democratic candidates Dawn L. Bullock and David Lozano were running against Republicans Vince Logan and Elizabeth (Betsy) Naglich. Logan, a retired teacher and police officer, was the sole incumbent. Democrat Natalie Coleman of Plainfield did not seek reelection.

Preliminary vote totals show 30% for Bullock, 23% for Lozano, 24% for Logan and 22% for Naglich.

In District 10, which includes portions of Aurora and Naperville, three people ran including incumbents Meta Mueller, an Aurora Democrat, and Julie Berkowicz, a Naperville Republican, along with Wheatland Township Trustee Kelly Hickey, a Naperville Democrat.

Vote totals show 37% for Hickey, 34% for Berkowicz and nearly 29% for Mueller with all precincts reporting.

Mueller, former Democratic Majority Leader and chair of the Capital Improvements Committee, was the only incumbent to lose her seat.

Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow was unopposed.

Michelle Mullins is a freelance reporter.