McHenry County Blog

The Daily Herald has issued its recommendations for county board. Those endorsed have their names in boldfaced type.

It targets the following issues:

• Rapid growth
• Transportation and
• Water supply

It disqualifies two candidates, who would apparently otherwise be endorsed,

• incumbent District 1 board member and Algonquin Township Clerk Republican Marc Munaretto, who lives in Algonquin, and
• District 6 Seneca Township Supervisor Ersel Schuster.

That’s because the Daily Herald supposedly takes a hard line on people holding two elective offices: they’re against it. They point out that there might be a conflict of interest. But, they endorsed Munaretto previously for county board. Go figure.

I’d assume from the laudatory things said about the two that they would otherwise be endorsed.

Here’s what was said about Munaretto:

”Although his sometimes arrogant approach can alienate, incumbent Marc Munaretto's financial savvy would net our endorsement for another term were he not to insist on holding two elected posts…”

Here’s what was written about Schuster:

”A sprawling District 6 covers most of the county's western half, straddling Huntley's western edge to Hebron and Harvard. Its unique needs require strong county board representatives. Of the five candidates, former county board member and current Seneca Township Supervisor Ersel Schuster stands out as someone who does her homework, knows the county's challenges and guarantees strong advocacy for constituents. But, if elected, she would hold two elected offices and our policy, as previously outlined, is to not endorse candidates holding conflicting positions.

So, with those two disqualified, here are the endorsees:

District 1 – Republican Party

• Former Fox River Grove Village President (and one of my 1992 GOP state rep. primary opponents) Bill Yocius is said to “clearly knows(s) the needs of the district” and


• Algonquin Township Trustee Lowell Cutsworth is also from FRG. Cutsworth says he will resign the trustee post, if elected. He is cited for “with his understanding of the growing district's transportation needs and the need to work with other entities to find solutions.”

So, it seems the Daily Herald likes three of the candidates. It dismisses “newcomer Bob Bless,” who had that lighted sign I saw in the fog on Christmas Day in Silver Lakes.

District 1 - Democratic Party

No primary contest for Cary's James McTague.

District 2 – Republican Party

No primary contest and, hence, no endorsement, for

• Incumbent Jim Heisler and
• Newcomer Scott Breeden, who has served as Lakewood Village President and President of the Crystal Lake Park Board.

District 3 – Republican Party

• Mary Donner and
• Nick Provenzano, both incumbents, were endorsed.

A third candidate, “challenger Jim Schlader shows great promise and would also make a strong county board member,” the editorial says.

Strangely, no mention is made of Kurt W. Milliman.

District 3 - Democratic Primary

No endorsement because of lack of opposition: Kathleen Bergan Schmidt.

District 4 – Republican Party

No primary contest and no endorsement with these two incumbents, both from Wonder Lake, running for re-election:

• John D. Hammerand and
• Sue Draffkorn

District 4 - Democratic Party

Running unopposed is Jeff Thirtyacre of Spring Grove.

District 5 – Republican Party

No primary contest. Incumbents running for re-election are

• John Jung and
• Virginia Peschke, both from the Woodstock area.

District 5 - Democratic Party

Running unopposed is Paula Yensen, a Lake in the Hills Trustee.

District 6 – Republican Party

• “Challenger Harry Alten would be a strong board member representing McHenry County's still-thriving farm community” and


• “Randy Donley knows his district's needs but has played a low-key role on this board thus far. We hope he'll be a stronger advocate in the future.”

Also listed as candidates are John Johns of Woodstock and Roger Naylor of Marengo.

Democrats - District 6

Three are running. Endorsed are

• Andrew Georgi and
• Robert Ludwig,

The Daily Herald says, “…both want the board to focus more on transportation and water issues, are endorsed.”

A third Democrat, hence the need for a Democratic Party primary election, named Darryl Frank told the Daily Herald that a sickness in the family precluded participation in the interview process.

= = = = =
The picture on top of Bill Yocius on the left and Lowell Cutsworth on the right was taken at the Cary-Grove Country Club, where the Algonquin Township Republican Central Committee held a candidates' night Tuesday night. You can see a photo of State Rep. and candidate for McHenry County Republican Party Chairman Mike Tryon addressing the crowd on the need for unity after the February 5th primary election.

The head shots below are of McHenry County Board members Mary Donner and Nick Provenzano.

County board member Randy Donely is seen alone because I do not have a photo of Harry Alten.

At the bottom are, from left to right, Democratic Party candidates for county board Andrew Georgi and Bob Ludwig. Their photographs were taken at the January 16th Democratic Party Central Committee meeting. Ludwig's was taken for his sweatshirt, which will appear as a "Message of the Day" one of these days. I didn't know he was a candidate when he allowed me to take it. The full photo will explain the slightly odd angle of his head.

The TV screen is what Republicans were seeing last night at the Cary Country Club while candidates were speaking.

Labels: Andrew Georgi, Bill Yocius, Ersel Schuster, Harry Alten, Jim Schlader, Lowell Cutsworth, Marc Munaretto, Mary Donner, Nick Provenzano, Randy Donley, Robert Ludwig