D229 and D218 School Board Seats Loom As Filing Begins Monday

OAK LAWN, IL — The candidate filing period for school board candidates will began Monday, Dec. 14 and continue through Monday, 21. About 700 candidates from 145 suburban school districts are expected to file their candidacy for the April 2021 Consolidated Election.

Every two years in odd-numbered years, Illinois voters head to the polls on the first Tuesday in April to select people for city councils, village boards, mayor, school boards, park boards and other local elected officials. School board candidates will file with the Cook County Clerk’s Office for the consolidated election, which falls on April 6, 2021.

Four seats are up for renewal in Oak Lawn Community High District 229. Each is a 4-year term. The seats will go to the top four vote getters at large.

Consolidated High School District 218, which includes Richards in Oak Lawn, Shepard in Palos Heights, and Eisenhower in Blue Island. The school district is organized by sub-districts. Residents within a specific subdistrict will elect their representative on the Dist. 218 Board of Education. Four seats are currently up for renewal: Cindy Bartczak (Dist. 2), Randy Heuser (Dist. 3), Tom Kosowski (Dist. 4) and Bill Christian (Dist. 7).

The Cook County Clerk’s Office in downtown Chicago at 69 W. Washington St., as well as the Elections Operation Center, 1330 S. 54th Ave., Cicero, will be open during the entirety of the filing period from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday Dec. 14.

A list of candidates who filed paperwork with the Clerk's office can be found at Candidate Filing.

In addition, candidate filing will be conducted at two suburban locations on the first day of filing, when most candidates historically have filed:

Orland Park Civic Center
14750 Ravinia Ave.
Orland Park

Old Orchard County Club
700 W. Rand Road
Mt. Prospect

All candidates who are in line by 8 a.m. on Dec. 14 will have their papers stamped with that time. If more than one candidate seeking the same office files at 8 a.m., a lottery will be conducted to determine whose name will appear first on the ballot. If more than one candidate seeking the same office files at 8 a.m., a lottery will be conducted to determine whose name will appear first on the ballot.

Anyone who files between 8:01 a.m. on Dec. 14 and 3:59 p.m. on Dec. 21 will be on the ballot in the order they turned in their nominating paperwork.

Candidates for the same office who file between 4 and 5 p.m. on Dec. 21, the last day of filing, will also be included in a ballot lottery for the last spot on the ballot.

From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, Dec. 15 to Dec. 18, and Monday, Dec. 21, candidates may file at the Cook County Clerk’s office in downtown Chicago, and the Elections Operations Center, 1330 S. 54th Ave., Cicero.

For more information about filing to run for an elected office in April 2021 and what's required, visit 2021 Info For Candidates on the county clerk's website.