Most incumbents leading in Lake County mayoral races

Voters chose experience Tuesday as incumbent mayors in several Lake County communities deflected challengers, although there were surprises.

Mayors in Libertyville, Gurnee and Round Lake were challenged by a village board trustee while leaders in Fox Lake and Wauconda faced community residents and Grayslake will have a new mayor for the first time in 16 years. Here’s a breakdown of who is leading, according to unofficial vote totals.

LIBERTYVILLE

Donna Johnson is headed for a second term as mayor after fending off a challenge by Trustee Matthew Hickey in a close race focused on experience versus a fresh perspective.

Johnson was leading with 2,482 votes compared to 2,151 for Hickey, who chose not to run for reelection after serving a single term as trustee and is off the board.

“Leadership You Know” was Johnson’s message. The village’s second woman and first person of color to serve as mayor in Libertyville, emphasized her experience and long-standing ties to the community.

Johnson headed the village’s plan commission/zoning board of appeals for nine years before being elected trustee in 2007.

She said she was running to finish initiatives she started, such as a new police headquarters and, if elected, this would be her last term.

Hickey, who has a degree in urban planning and works in commercial banking, ran a dogged campaign knocking on doors in every Libertyville neighborhood and hosting more than 15 coffees.

He contended residents needed a change from entrenched practices in the way the village deals with various issues, such as planning and redevelopment and better communication with residents.

GURNEE

With 2,533 votes, Mayor Tom Hood easily defeated challenger Trustee Quin O’Brien with 1,086 votes and will return for a second term. O’Brien, who is the middle of a four-year term on the village board, also returns.

The pair are well acquainted and the campaign for the most part was quiet, although Hood in the final weeks of the campaign clarified issues such as police hiring raised in mailers sent on O’Brien’s behalf by the Illinois Realtors PAC.

Hood said Gurnee has not levied a property tax in 25 years and doesn’t plan to do so. The village is in the strongest financial condition it has ever been, he added.

In seeking reelection, Hood said safety is his first priority. Gurnee hired 39 officers in the last four years to keep up with retirements and departures and now has more officers than it did pre-COVID, Hood said.

The hiring allowed for more officers in schools as well as at Six Flags, Gurnee Mills and in neighborhoods, he added. The addition of drones and AI technology will make Gurnee police among the most advanced in Lake County, Hood said.

ROUND LAKE

Mayor Russell Kraly was crushed by challenger Trustee Brian Brubaker who assembled a slate including two incumbents.

Unofficial results show Brubaker ousting Kraly, who was seeking a second term, with 834 votes to 205 votes, respectively.

Brubaker previously served a single term but wasn’t reelected in 2009. The emergence of a proposed ski hill on 94 village-owned acres brought him back into the picture.

He says the village has not done or brought any significant sales tax producing economic development to town and that the ski hill area was a missed opportunity.

Kraly has 44 years in public service, including stints as village administrator and trustee. He said if elected this would have been his last term.

GRAYSLAKE

Veteran village Trustee Elizabeth Davies pummeled challenger Jeff Loffredo to become Grayslake’s first new mayor in 16 years.

Davies, a high school math teacher, had 2,385 votes to 246 votes for Loffredo, a pipe fitter and current Avon Township trustee.

Davies was endorsed by outgoing Village President Rhett Taylor as his successor.

WAUCONDA

In a battle of two slates, Jeff Sode and his team cruised to a second term as mayor besting J.R. Meyers.

With 1,245 votes, Sode, who led the Wauconda Strong team that included two incumbents easily defeated Meyers, with 318 votes, who headed the Wauconda Screams 4 Ice Cream Party.

Sode previously served two years as a trustee. He said he ran to see through several initiatives in the works, including redevelopment of the area near the southeast corner of routes 12 and 176. The village is working with developers, business entrepreneurs and consultants to identify areas and attract investors, he added.

FOX LAKE

Veteran Mayor Donny Schmit sailed to a fourth term with 1,101 votes over challenger Sean R. Stochl’s 402 votes.

Schmit grew up in town and campaigned on his lifetime of service to the village and accomplishments citing a proven track record. Attracting more business and new development including in downtown and on vacant parcels is a priority, he said.