Former Niles Deputy Police Chief Vince Genualdi announced he will drop his run for village board just two days after declaring his candidacy last week.
In an emailed statement to Pioneer Press, Genualdi said he was withdrawing from the race “due to a possible conflict with my place of employment.”
Earlier statements described Genualdi as a “physical security expert.”
Genualdi had been planning to run alongside Sherry Bailey-Schutt, Marko Ratic and Pradip Pandya as the “Citizens for Niles” slate.
In their campaign announcement, the slate said their message was “short and sweet: stop the insane property tax increases, phony no tax increase talk and wasteful spending by village government.”
The candidates will face incumbent Trustees Craig Niedermaier and Dean Strzelecki in the April 4 election as well as newcomer Marryann Warda, a 24-year-old registered nurse, as the “Vision for Niles” slate. Voters vote for individual candidates, not slates.
Strzelecki is the former chief of the Niles Police Department, meaning that Genualdi’s run would have brought him toe to toe with his old boss for a seat on the village board.
The Citizens for Niles Party did not respond to multiple emailed inquiries from Pioneer Press as to their plans now that Genualdi has dropped out.
Former Niles-Maine District Library Board president Morgan Dubiel confirmed to Pioneer Press last week that he’d run alongside Niedermaier, Strzelecki and Warda for former Trustee Joe LoVerde’s open seat. LoVerde resigned his seat abruptly last month, citing a difference in personalities and working styles among himself and other trustees.