Illinois has a new governor.
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ROCHELLE — Illinois has a new governor.
Gubernatorial candidate JB Pritzker unseated Gov. Bruce Rauner, capturing 54 percent of the votes Tuesday in the mid-term election. At last tally, Rauner stands at just under 40 percent.
Rep. Adam Kinzinger was re-elected in the 16th congressional district, capturing nearly 60 percent of the votes over challenger Sara Dady. State Rep. Tom Demmer won a fourth term in the 90th District.
Other state winners include Susana Mendoza as Comptroller, Kwame Raoul as Attorney General, Mike Frerichs as Treasurer and Jesse White as Secretary of State.
Closer to home in Ogle County, nearly 60 percent of registered voters cast ballots.
Voters in the Flagg districts reached an average of 53 percent, casting 3,952 ballots. The total registered voters casting ballots in Dement reached 57 percent.
Ogle County Clerk Laura Cook said the voter turnout was high for mid-terms, attributing it to the governor’s race.
“Without seeing the numbers in front of me, I believe in the 2014 mid-terms we were around 51 percent (registered voters casting ballots), and then to see this year’s mid-term election coming at 59 percent countywide is phenomenal,” Cook said. “These voters exercised their privilege to vote.”
Cook said early voting reached impressive amounts as well; 424 people cast ballots on the first day of early voting last week. More than 2,500 people in total voted early.
“I wanted to say a thank you to the election judges. Without them we can’t do it,” Cook added. “We did see an influx of judges … we had more election judges call us and say they wanted to be appointed somewhere and were willing to travel.”
Ogle County Board
County board members elected are as follows: District 1, Rick Fritz and Benjamin Youman; District 2, Patricia Nordman and Wayne Reising; District 3, Greg Sparrow and Lloyd Droege; District 4, Bruce McKinney and Skip Kenney; District 5, Martin Typer and Richard Janes; District 6, Dorothy Bowers and Todd McLester; District 7, Stanley Asp and Dean Fox; and District 8, Lyle Hopkins and Susie Corbitt.
Judge Robert McLaren of the Second Judicial District retained his seat as well as Judges Michael Bald and Robert Hanson of the 15th Judicial District.
Looking ahead in April, voters will head to the polls in the consolidated election for the positions of school boards, city and village seats and any special referendums.
See page 6 for local reaction to governor’s race.