Politics & Government
Races To Watch In Lake County: State's Attorney, Coroner & More
It's time to cast your ballot. The presidential race is sure to be heated. Here's a look at local races to watch as well.
LAKE COUNTY, IL — While the presidential election will be the main draw for voters heading to the polls, or voting by mail, this election, many more state congressional and county seats will be on your ballot. And those elected to these seats will be charged with making important decisions, amid a pandemic, that could have a drastic affect on our future.
We can all play our part by casting our ballot in this year's election. To make sure you are all set, we've got some simple guidance on how to request a mail-in ballot, how to make sure you are registered to vote (or how to register if you're not) and more in our 2020 Illinois Voter Guide.
Here are some of the top races for Lake County voters to watch in the 2020 election.
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Lake County State's Attorney
This year's race for the Lake County State's Attorney's office is expected to be a competitive one.
Lake County State's Attorney Mike Nerheim, a Gurnee Republican, is taking on challenger Eric Rinehart, a Highwood Democrat and criminal defense attorney. The Democratic challenger, who was unopposed in the party's March primary, listed among his top priorities fighting violent crime, reducing racial profiling and eliminating wrongful prosecutions. During his campaign, he's called on community leaders, law enforcement and mayors to team up to combat violence in their communities, the Chicago Tribune reports.
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Nerheim has been in office since 2012 and has pointed to his efforts to decrease violent crime, which he said was on the decline in the county prior to the coronavirus pandemic, as a reason he should keep his post. He also highlighted his work on pursuing convictions in the most serious felony cases, his office's decision to hire a full-time crime analyst in an effort to reduce crimes, and his efforts to hold police accountable.
For more information on this race:
- Lake County State's Attorney Candidates Face Off At Online Forum
- Patch Candidate Q&A: Mike Nerheim, Lake County State's Attorney
- Lake County State's Attorney Candidates Say Cameras Bring Transparency to Courtroom
Endorsements
Candidate bios
Lake County Coroner
One-term Republican Howard Cooper and Democrat Jennifer Banek, a nurse anesthesiologist from Green Oaks, are voters' choices this year for Lake County Coroner. Both have stressed the importance of community outreach in preventing deaths, according to the Daily Herald.
Cooper says he's focused on encouraging people of all ages to avoid risky behaviors and also help people grieve and heal following a love one's death, according to the Daily Herald. Accomplishments he touts during his four years in office include ensuring the coroner's office was accredited by by the International Association of Coroners and Medical Examiners and boarded by the American Board of Medicolegal Death Investigators. He also re-instituted coroner's inquests for all officer-involved and in-custody deaths to increase transparency. His office has focused on educating high school students on the "deadly consequences of opioid use, addiction, and making good choices," according to his candidate website.
Banek who is a captain in the Army Reserves, a trustee on the Cook Memorial Library District Board and active in the community, says she will use her combined experience in the healthcare field and in the military to ensure the county's health and safety. She says health issues leading to premature death, including opioid abuse, vaping, gun safety, and ethylene oxide emissions, are among the concerns facing residents in the future, according to her candidate website.
Endorsements
Candidate Bios
Referendum
Voters will be posed this questions: "Shall the office of the Recorder of Lake County be eliminated on December 1, 2022, by merging that office's duties and responsibilities into the office of the County Clerk of Lake County?"
The Lake County Board approved the referendum on June 9. Consolidating the recorder and clerk's offices has been approved in other counties with Cook County planning to merge its offices in 2021 and McHenry County approving a similar referendum in 2018, the Lake County News-Sun reports. Lake County Board member Paul Frank, D-Highland Park, who is also the chair of the finance committee, has said the merger would mean cutting the $127,824 recorder's salary, according to the article.
No other jobs are expected to be eliminated and Frank said officials are hopeful the merger will mean more efficiencies in the future.
Lake County Recorder
The main task for the county's recorder in the upcoming four years could be to merge the clerk's office and the recorder's office if voters decide the merger should move forward. Both Democratic incumbent Mary Ellen Vanderventer of Waukegan and Deerfield Republican Emilia Czyszczon agree that the merger should happen.
Czyszczon, 29, is a project management consultant and first-time candidate. She said she held a petition drive last summer to get the merger referendum on the ballot for the upcoming election, and touts her experience in her career, where she focuses on helping clients merge departments and companies, as why she'd be a good pick, the New-Sun reports.
Vanderventer has spent 24 years as the recorder for Lake County and, if elected, would be entering her seventh term. She requested the Lake County Board place the merger referendum on the ballot. Prior to serving as the recorder, Vanderventer spent 10 years in the clerk's office and says she knows the situations that occur in both offices, both offices' employees, and says she is equipped to make an "easy transition," according to the Lake County News-Sun.
Endorsements
Lake County Board
Several county board seats are up for election, including seats in districts 1, 2, 4, 7, 12, 13, 16 and 20. Among the contested races to watch is the District 12 race. Paras Parekh, a first-time township trustee, is challenging Mike Rummel, a former mayor and a two-term board member, to represent the 12th District, which includes parts of Deerfield, Highland Park, Knollwood and Lake Forest. Get better informed on the race in our preview: Rummel Vs. Parekh: Lake County Board District 12 Election Preview.
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