• Editor’s Note: This article is part of a series informing Kane County residents “who’s on the ballot” in the variety of contests that will appear on the April 4 consolidated election ballot. The primary sources are the Kane County Clerk’s Office election webpages and the Aurora Election Commission website. Kane County Connects encourages citizens to visit those sites and other media to find out more about the candidates and issues.

If you need a reason to get out and vote Tuesday, look no further than the contested mayoral and village president races that will headline local ballots on April 4.

There are contested mayoral races in Aurora, Batavia and Geneva, and village president contests in Barrington Hills, Carpentersville, Elburn, Lily Lake and South Elgin.

There’s also more than a little competition for aldermanic and village trustee positions in many Kane County communities during this hyper-local election season. By saying “contested,” of course, we’re talking about races that feature two or more candidates running for one open seat or positions in which there are more candidates than seats available.

Click this link to find out “at a glance” who’s running in municipal races, and scroll to the “Read More” below for links to other election-related stories and “how to’s.” As always, if there are any typos or omissions in the information below, please email kanecountyconnects@gmail.com.

Here’s a little more detail about the municipal races in which “the big kahuna” position is up for grabs:

Aurora

Perhaps the most high-profile race on the ballot will take place in the second-largest city in Illinois, where Richard Irvin will face off against Richard Guzman. According to the city of Aurora website, Irvin has served as alderman at large since 2007 and Guzman served as former Mayor Tom Weisner’s assistant chief of staff since 2011.

Irvin and Guzman advanced in a four-way Feb. 28 primary race, bumping out 83rd District state Rep. Linda Chapa Lavia and Sixth Ward Alderman Michael B. Saville. The April 4 winner will be Aurora’s first newly-elected mayor since Weisner won election in 2004.

Geneva

The Geneva mayoral election pits Kevin R. Burns against Thomas Simonian. Burns has served as Geneva’s mayor since 2001, and Simonian has served as the city’s Fifth Ward alderman since 2013.

Also interesting is that Geneva will see contested aldermanic races in all five of the city’s wards. It’s Michael J. Bruno vs. Michael D. Olesen in Ward 1, Richard G. Marks vs. Michael Clements in Ward 2, Mary W. Seno vs. Becky Hruby in Ward 3, Ron Singer vs. Jeanne (Letizia) McGowan in Ward 4 and Robert C. Swanson vs. Douglas B. Warlick in Ward 5.

Batavia

In Batavia, Jason Stoops takes on Jeffery Schielke in the race for mayor. Schielke has served as Batavia’s mayor for 36 years; Stoops is nearing the end of a four-year term as a member of the Batavia School Board.

There is one contested aldermanic race in Batavia, where Scott Salvati faces off against Carl Dinwiddie in Ward 1.

Barrington Hills

Barrington Hills’ footprint straddles four counties: Cook, Kane, Lake and McHenry. Voters in the Kane County portion will have a chance to choose between Louis Iacovelli and Martin J. McLaughlin. McLaughlin has served as village president since 2013. Iacovelli is a technology engineer and consultant who has led his homeowners association and been active in some community projects.

Elburn

Three candidates are vying for village president of Elburn: Jeffrey D. Walter, David J. Gualdoni and Christopher G. Mondi. Walter has served on the village board since 2009, Gualdoni has served on the village board since 2011 and Mondi seeks his first elected office.

Elburn voters will have to choose three candidates from among four people vying for village trustee: Patricia (Pat) J. Schuberg, Matthew Wilson, Kenneth N. Anderson, Jr. and Michael Rullman.

Carpentersville

Two candidates are vying for the Carpentersville village president position. John M. Skillman is the former fire chief of the village of Carpentersville and Edward M. Ritter has served as village president for eight years.

Lily Lake

In the Lily Lake contest for village president Rick Overstreet will face off with Mike L. Carlson. While most mayoral and village president terms in Kane County municipalities are for four years, the Lily Lake position is a two-year term, according to the County Clerk’s Office website.

South Elgin

South Elgin features a three-way race for village president between candidates Lisa G. Guess, Steve Ward and Bill DiFulvio. Guess has been a village trustee since 2003. Ward has served as village president since 2013. DiFulvio was a village trustee from 2001 to 2013.

Unopposed Mayoral and Village President Candidates

Running unopposed for the top position in their villages and cities are:

• Raymond P. Rogina for mayor of St. Charles.
• John C. Schmitt for village president of Algonquin.
• Kevin Wallace for village president of Bartlett.
• Bob Walsh for village president of Burlington.
• Lael Miller for village president of East Dundee.
• Rick A. Zirk for village president of Gilberts.
• Jeffrey R. Magnussen for village president of Hampshire.
• William D. McLeod for village president of Hoffman Estates.
• Charles Sass for village president of Huntley.
• David Kovach for village president of Kaneville.
• Kathleen Curtis for village president of Maple Park.
• Matthew T. Brolley for village president of Montgomery.
• Dale Berman for village president of North Aurora.
• Stephan K. Pickett for village president of Sleepy Hollow.
• Sean Michels for village president of Sugar Grove.
• Christopher Nelson for village president of West Dundee.

Other Hot Topics on the April 4 Ballot

Voters in various parts of Kane County voters also will have a chance to decide on nine referendums that affect your pocketbook and governmental services.