Duffy defeats Gentes, captures Peterson's seat

Dan Duffy was cruising in his effort to keep state Senate District 26 in the Republican column Tuesday.

With all 187 precincts counted in Lake, Cook and McHenry counties, unofficial totals show Duffy with 68,082 votes to Democratic Round Lake Mayor Bill Gentes' 41,407. Some early or absentee ballots still had to be tallied. District 26 covers 42 suburbs.

Duffy, 42, of Lake Barrington, will replace veteran GOP state Sen. William Peterson of Long Grove, who's retiring. It was Duffy's first attempt at elected office.

From his Election Night party at a Barrington restaurant late Tuesday, Duffy said he plans to work for more transparency in government when he gets to Springfield. He said he was gratified by the strong voter support.

"The voters are showing they don't want more of the same," Duffy said. "They want someone to shake things up."

Top issues for Duffy included opposing casino expansion in Illinois and requiring an online posting of every check written from state coffers so taxpayers can clearly see where the money is going. He said he plans to seek cost cuts and a balanced state budget.

Gentes, 49, said he ran the kind of campaign he wanted. His top issues included education and favoring state money going toward improving major roads such as Route 60 and Route 120.

"I did what I had to do," Gentes said Tuesday night.

Duffy succeeded in a heated campaign with Gentes.

Gentes accused Duffy of spreading falsehoods about his wife's connection to a Round Lake government real estate deal. Duffy said Gentes' campaign misled some voters into believing he supports Canadian National Railroad's plan to run more freight trains through the 26th District.

Gentes apologized for not telling the truth during a Daily Herald editorial board interview. In October, Gentes said he was on a leave of absence as operations director at the Realtor Association of NorthWest Chicagoland, then admitted he was fired in February.

Duffy said it might be difficult working as a Republican in the Democrat-heavy House, but he's up for the task. He said he grew up in a large household that was split with Democrats and Republicans.

"I like building bridges," said Duffy, co-owner of Effective Data Inc. "I like working with people."