With contested races for Village Boards in both Elmwood Park and River Grove, candidates are working hard to get out the vote prior to Election Day.
In Elmwood Park, three incumbents on the Elmwood Park Village Board are running for re-election for their three seats.
But newcomer Colm Mitchell is gunning for a seat as well. He said so far he feels good about his chances on April 7.
“I have been out on the weekends talking to as many voters as I can,” he said.
He said the main reason he’s running is because he believes the trustees running for re-election as well and the rest of the board members are all “rubber stamps.”
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“All the sitting trustees never vote no,” he said. “They need someone on the board who won’t vote yes to everything.”
Mitchell, 25, said a younger and fresher member, like himself, is needed on the board.
Angela Stranges, who is running for her second term, believes just the opposite and says always voting yes on Village Board issues doesn’t mean she or the rest of the board are rubber stamps.
“I don’t think we rubber stamp; I think we work well together,” she said. “There is nothing to be gained by a divisive board, so we work it out and move forward.”
She said board members voice their opinions on village officials and work toward a compromise.
“We all work together and stand behind what we do,” she said. “If I have questions, I get them answered and we kind of just move on. I’m always going to do what I feel is what’s best for the village.”
She believes that’s a good practice and something voters understand when they go to the polls on April 7. She, along with trustee incumbents Alan Kaminski and Jonathan Zivojnovich, are running for re-election.
In River Grove, a newcomer is also vying for a seat on the Village Board, while three incumbents are seeking re-election.
River Grove Village Board incumbents Tracy Aller, Lynn Bjorvick and Robert Thomas want their seats back for another term, while Henry Bramski wants to one for himself. Bramski is no stranger to running for a seat on the Village Board and previously ran in 2009.
There will be several new names on the ballot for a seat on Elmwood Park Community Unit School District 401 School Board as well.
Newcomers Lauren Platt and Andrea A. Sciullo are each running for one of four seats on the school board. They are running against four incumbent school board members: Peter Volpe, board president Mary Bruscato, Michael Scheidt and Jason Shipinski.