By Igor Studenkov | Bugle Staff
nweditor@buglenewspapers.com
@NilesILNews
On March 15, residents of Niles, Morton Grove Park, Park Ridge and incorporated Maine Township will have a chance to cast their ballots – though only some of those votes offer more than one choice.
For Niles, the biggest issue is three referenda, one of which is binding. That referendum would reverse the results of a November 2014 referendum that removed the Niles mayor’s power to fill village trustee vacancies. Instead, it required the vacancies to be filled during the nearest municipal election. If the vacancy occurs less than 196 days before an election, the vacancy would be filled at the following municipal election two years later.
The Feb. 23 village board meeting was the last before the primary, and Mayor Andrew Przybylo made his case for returning that power to the mayor. Przybylo said filling trustee vacancies promptly is necessary to keep the village functioning during emergencies, repeatedly describing the that responsibility as “emergency powers.”
As previously reported by the Bugle, certain board decisions require at least four trustees, such as votes on emergency disaster relief, lease of equipment and machinery, rejection of interest arbitration decisions in village union contracts, issuing bonds for water and sewer repairs, and transferring funds between village departments.
Przybylo argued that if the board ever has three vacancies at once, it wouldn’t be able to cast those votes at all. This, he added, could plunge the village into a crisis. He raised the same arguments in the run-up to the 2014 vote.
Niles voters would also be able to vote on two advisory referenda. The first asks whether the village should make improvements to the area surrounding the Leaning Tower of Niles. The second concerns village funding of community service programs run by the Niles Senior Center, Niles Family Services, Niles Teen Center and the Niles Family Fitness Center. Unlike the mayoral power referendum, these referenda aren’t legally binding.
Voters will also be able to vote for congressional candidates for party nominations. In the US Senate race, Republican primaries feature incumbent Mark Kirk facing off against challenger James T. Marter. According to Marter’s candidate statement, he is running on a more socially conservative platform than Kirk.
On the Democratic side, three candidates are vying for their party’s Senate nomination. They include U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth, D-8th; former Chicago Urban League CEO Andrea Zopp and State Sen. Napoleon Harris, D-98.
The U.S. House of Representatives race is less competitive, for now. Long-time incumbent Jan Schakowsky is running unopposed in the Democratic Primary for the 9th Congressional District. Her Republican challenger in the November general election, Joan McCarthy Lasonde, is running unopposed in the Republican primary.
Stacks are higher in some area races for the Illinois General Assembly.
Democratic incumbent John C. D’Amico is facing a challenge from Jac Charlier to be the state representative of Illinois House District 15, which includes most of Niles and Morton Grove. The winner will face Jonathan Edelman, who is running unopposed in the Republican primary.
However, most state primaries only have one candidate for each party. Several districts with long-time Democratic incumbents are not facing challenges from either party. In Illinois House District 16, which includes northeastern Morton Grove and most of Skokie, incumbent Lou Lang is running unopposed in the Democratic primary. There is no candidate running in the Republican primary.
In District 20, new candidate Merry Marwig is running unopposed in the Democratic primary. Republican candidate Michael McAuliffe is running unopposed in his party’s primary. The district includes parts of unincorporated Maine Township, sections of Park Ridge northeast of the Metra tracks and much of southwestern quarter of Niles.
In District 55, which includes the remaining portions of Park Ridge, incumbent Martin Moylan is running unopposed in the Democratic primary. Dan Gott is running unopposed in the Republican primary.
In District 8 of the Illinois State Senate, incumbent Ira Silverstein is running unopposed in the Democratic primary. In Senate District 10, incumbent John Mulroe is running unopposed in the Democratic primary.
Neither district has a Republican primary candidate. District 8 includes most of Niles, Morton Grove and unincorporated sections of Maine Township. District 10 includes southwestern Niles and most of Park Ridge northeast of the Metra tracks.
In District 28, which includes the remaining sections of Park Ridge, incumbent Laura Murphy is running unopposed in the Democratic primary. In the general election, she will off against Republican candidate Mel Thillens, who is running unopposed in his party’s primary.