Hose, Gilmartin, Glover Projected For Downers Grove Village Board

DOWNERS GROVE, IL — Voters made their way to the polls Tuesday to elect new members for the Downers Grove Village Board of Trustees. Incumbent Greg Hose and newcomers Chris Gilmartin and Danny Glover are projected to win the three open seats, each of which is a four-year term.

Uncontested races were also held for Downers Grove Grade School District 58 and Community High School District 99.

Downers Grove Village Board of Trustees Election Results

In Tuesday's election, six candidates vied for three seats that were open on the Downers Grove Village Council. The race included two incumbent candidates and four challengers.

With 100 percent of precincts reporting, newcomers Chris Gilmartin and Danny Glover, along with incumbent Greg Hose, are projected to win the election. This would mark Hose's third term as village commissioner.

Chris Gilmartin: 2,914 votes, 19.73 percent

Margaret "Marge" Earl: 1,590 votes, 10.76 percent

Danny Glover: 3,026 votes, 20.48 percent

Andrew Pelloso: 2,281 votes, 15.44 percent

Tammi Karam: 1,468 votes, 9.94 percent

Greg Hose: 3,493 votes, 23.65 percent

About the Candidates

Margaret Earl

Incumbent candidate Margaret "Marge" Earl has served on the Downers Grove Village Council since 2016. Earl served as a member of the village's Zoning Board of Appeals from 2007 through 2016, according to her profile on the Village of Downers Grove website. She became chair of that board in 2015.

Earl was a member of the Downers Grove Comprehensive Planning Ad Hoc Committees in 2010 and 2016. She also served as a member of the 2007 Ad Hoc Housing Committee.

Earl has lived in Downers Grove's Hummer Park neighborhood with her husband and daughter since 1992.

Chris Gilmartin

Challenger Chris Gilmartin is the CEO and Founder of Lever Interactive and Coming of Age. He has served on the Downers Grove Human Services Ad Hoc Committee.

Heading into Tuesday's race, Gilmartin promised, "As a member of the Village Council, I intend to focus on two areas where the pandemic has had a devastating impact – boosting economic growth and connecting struggling residents with the support services they need," according to his Patch candidate profile.

One of Gilmartin's goals has been to drive economic growth throughout the village. His Patch candidate profile stated, "I am convinced that thriving in these challenging times, requires measured coordination of all the key stakeholders in our local economy, and as Village Commissioner, it will be my responsibility to ensure the Council does all it can in supporting these efforts."

Danny Glover

Danny Glover has been a lifelong resident of Downers Grove. He owns and operates Skuddlebutts Pizza and Catering, Party People Rental Company, and Ogden and Douglas Commercial Properties. He is married to Sabrina, his high school sweetheart from Downers Grove North, according to his campaign website.

Ahead of Election Day, Glover stated in his Patch candidate profile, "I want to ensure that Downers Grove remains a village everyone would love to live, raise a family, start a business, and invest in. In order to keep our community as vibrant as it is, we need to be an attractive village for not only residents, but business as well. I believe we can do that by supporting them instead of throwing up roadblocks. When our businesses thrive, they give back, and our community thrives."

Greg Hose

Incumbent candidate Greg Hose has served on the Downers Grove Village Council since 2013. He has also served on the Environmental Concerns Commission and the Plan Commission, in addition to serving as Mayor Pro Tem. Hose is an attorney with Gregorio & Marco, Ltd.; he lives near Downers Grove's Hummer Park with his wife and two daughters.

Hose's Patch Candidate Profile stated, "With my extensive experience in the small details of Downers Grove village government, I know the issues facing us can't be reduced to simple campaign sound bites. I was the one who was elected as the outsider who was going to shake-up the Council. I still challenge the status quo, pushing the council forward to make our town better while protecting its special character, but now I know all the reality of it. If anything, I'm even more passionately committed to that work than ever. But it IS work. Real work."

Tammi Karam

Tammi Karam lives in Downers Grove with her family. She has been the owner of Humidor of Downers Grove for the past 16 years, according to her LinkedIn profile. Karam's Patch Candidate Profile states that she has held "leadership roles within the Chamber of Commerce, my parish, and local non-profits."

Karam stated in her candidate profile, "Having resided in both North, South, and unincorporated Downers, I bring insight into the council that no other candidate has. I have been a struggling single mom who was blessed by our local food pantry and social services to help keep my family fed both physically and emotionally. Persevering through those struggles and lots of hard work helped me to run a successful business in our downtown business district. My struggles as well as successes allow me to understand the wide variety of peoples embodying Downers Grove, as well as the businesses that support and bring a richness to our community."

Andrew Pelloso

Andrew Pelloso has been a Downers Grove resident since 2011. He currently lives in the village with his wife and daughter, according to his campaign website. Pelloso has worked as an environmental policy analyst for 27 years.

Ahead of the April 6 election, Pelloso's Patch Candidate Profile stated, "The most important differences between myself and other candidates is experience and a willingness to take on all issues, no matter how difficult or controversial the topic. If elected, I will do everything to remove delays and obstacles to addressing the hard issues that matter to the future of DG."

Downers Grove Grade School District 58

Four candidates were vying for four spots on the uncontested Downers Grove Grade School District 58 Board of Education. Each will serve a four-year term. They are, alphabetically by last name:

• Melissa Bocker Ellis
• Gregory Harris
• Darren Hughes
• Tracy Weiner

Community High School District 99

Four candidates were in the running for four seats in the uncontested race for the board of education for Community High School District 99. They are, alphabetically by last name:

• Christopher Espinoza
• Sherell Fuller
• Jennifer Hagstrom
• Teresa K. Pavesich