The general membership of the Winnetka Caucus has ratified the recommendations of its Caucus Council ahead of next April’s municipal elections.
At a Nov. 16 virtual meeting, the Caucus members signed off on its own Council’s endorsements for the village presidency, village council, the local public library board and in the only contested part of the meeting, the Winnetka District 36 school board.
Having the Caucus backing provides a tremendous advantage for any candidates, which acts essentially as a nonpartisan political party making independent challenges an uphill battle.
Roughly two hours of the three-hour meeting centered on the future of Winnetka District 36, where voters earlier this month approved a $59.4 million bond sale referendum providing for renovations at all five elementary schools.
Caucus officials said there were approximately 460 people watching at the beginning of the meeting with many asking questions to the board candidates regarding issues facing the school board.
With incumbent Dawn Livingston coming off the board after serving two four-year terms and fellow incumbents Megan Panje-Wilson and Maxie Clark not seeking reelection after one term, the Caucus had three open seats to fill for the school board as incumbent board president Emily Rose was seeking a new term.
The candidates backed by the Caucus easily prevailed with Katherine Myers-Crum led the pack with 75% of the vote, followed by Marena Rudy with 74%, Rose received 70% followed by Luke Figora with 61%.
“We do have room to improve and opportunities to accelerate,” Rose said. “That is what I am most excited about. I believe my collaborative approach and the desire to do what is best for the student and the community makes me a top candidate to continue to serve.”
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Patrick Conway was nominated on the floor, but came in fifth with 41% of the vote.
At New Trier High School, the New Trier Caucus — a separate organization — previously announced its slate.
At the Winnetka Park District, commissioners Christina Codo, James Hemmings, Cynthia Rapp and Jeff Tyson were endorsed without opposition. Yet, there was an acknowledgment this has been a rocky period for the park board.
“Rebuilding trust and fostering transparency are so critical to our being able to move forward with the plans for the beaches,” Codo said. “It is going to take a lot of time.”
Hemmings and Tyson are set to join the park board as current commissioners Mickey Archambault and David Seaman are not running for reelection.
Chris Rintz ran unopposed for a second term for the village presidency.
For village council, incumbent Bob Dearborn was re-slated for a second term where he is set to be joined by Kirk Albinson and Bridget Orsic as incumbent Andrew Cripe faced term limits and trustee John Swerk did not seek reelection.
Finally, at the Winnetka-Northfield Public Library board, incumbents Travis Gosselin, Deborah Vandergrift, Ranjini Shankar and Matt Kinnich were nominated for new terms.
Daniel I. Dorfman is a freelance reporter with Pioneer Press.