Friday, March 23, 2012
Voter turnout in Illinois may be the lowest in decades.
Voter turnout in Tuesday’s primary in Lake County echoed the low turnout throughout Illinois. Just 23.46 percent of registered voters exercised their right to vote. Lake County Clerk Willard Helander said voter turnout for primaries is historically lighter than the general election. However, Helander said she was surprised that voters did not turn out for the 10th Congressional district race. The 10th district runs through most of Lake County. “That was surprising. It was a four-way race and well financed. I expected far more people to be out and interested,” she said. Helander was surprised that more people pulled a Republican ballot, than Democrat. “My personal opinion is that people just weren’t inspired,” she said. Voter turnout was …
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Find out who won locally.
Electricity Aggregation: "Shall the Village of Buffalo Grove have the authority to arrange for the supply of electricity for its residential and small commercial retail customers who have not opted out of such a program?" — Election results
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Coroner Artis Yancey of Waukegan was defeated Tuesday.
Coroner Artis Yancey of Waukegan lost his bid to stay in office Tuesday night to political newcomer Thomas Rudd of Lake Forest in the race for the Democratic nomination for Lake County coroner. According to unofficial totals, Rudd received 12,877 votes, or 53.78 percent, while Yancey received 11,066 votes, or 46.22 percent, in the Democratic primary. On the Republican side, Steve Newton of Antioch claimed victory over Howard Cooper of Bannockburn. Newton received 26,070 votes, or 56.14 percent, while Cooper garnered 20,370 votes, or 43.86 percent. The totals do not include provisional or late-arriving vote-by-mail ballots. "I'm very proud of all the hard work and all the people that contributed to this campaign," said Yancey, who gathered …
Rep. Sid Mathias (R-Buffalo Grove) and Rep. Carol Sente (D-Vernon Hills) are uncontested in the primary.
See below for updated polling numbers, which we'll refresh as more precincts are reported. You can also find voting results on the Lake County and Cook County websites. For the latest news throughout the evening, check our 2012 Election Liveblog. Our 2012 Election Central gives you a recap of each local race and candidate. Precincts reporting: 56/56 Lake County 7/7 Cook County Cook: 100 Lake: 100 Cook: 439 Lake: 3,758 Cook: 100 Lake: 100 Cook: 413 Lake: 2,589
Two Democrats and two Republicans sought spots on the general election ballot for Lake County Coroner.
Update, 9:14 p.m. Unofficial results show that Democrat Tom Rudd of Lake Forest has taken the victory over incumbent Artis Yancey of Waukegan in the race for Lake County Coroner, with all 415 precincts reporting. On the Republican side, Steve Newton of Antioch beat Howard Cooper of Bannockburn. The totals do not include provisional or late-arriving vote by mail ballots. Update, 8:23 p.m. Democrat Tom Rudd of Lake Forest leads incumbent Artis Yancey of Waukegan in the race for Lake County Coroner, with 400 of 415 precincts reporting. On the Republican side, Steve Newton of Antioch is ahead of Howard Cooper of Bannockburn. Update, 8:12 p.m. With 371 of 415 precincts reporting, Democrat Tom Rudd of Lake Forest is maintaining his lead over …
Lake County Recorder of Deeds, Circuit Court Clerk candidates.
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Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Bob Bednar ran on the platform of eliminating the office he is running for in Lake County. And apparently voters agree with him. The former Lake Bluff resident captured the Republican nomination in the Lake County Recorder of Deeds race over Highland Park's Marty Blumenthal in Tuesday night's primary. Bednar garnered 52 percent of the vote to nudge Blumenthal's 47 percent. He will face Democratic incumbent Mary Ellen Vanderventer in the November general election. Keith Brin emerged from an even closer race for Circuit Court Clerk Tuesday night over Gerald Dietz. Brin, a Highland Park resident, won by less than 3 percent with just over 51 percent of the vote while Dietz had better than 48 percent. Brin will face Democrat Cynthia Pruim …
Patch readers and editors will discuss presidential, congressional and state election results as they roll in. The live blog starts at 7 p.m.
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Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Join the conversation!
It's hard to know which judges are qualified and which are not. Use these bar association guides to help you decide. Download them on your smart phone and take them into the voting booth.
Many people who have been involved in court cases will tell you how important it is to elect good, qualified judges. In fact, the only defense the public has against unqualified judges is to vote them out of office. But with so many judges on the ballot, how can a voter make intelligent choices? Lawyers who work with judges on a regular basis have rated them in bar association guides, below. Some can even be downloaded on your smart phone; you can take them into the voting booth with you.
Here's a recap of Patch's primary election coverage and letters to the editor about the candidates.
Review your ballot before you head to the polls today.
Janet Sirabian
10:34 am on Friday, March 23, 2012
Voting is a privilege that we too often take for granted. This is a privilege for which our troops risk their lives. There are areas in the world where people have to stand in line for many hours to cast a ballot. In the United States, it is something that takes less than 15 minutes. I do know that some do not vote in a Primary because they do not wish to declare a party. I hope that changes for … more ›