DuPage candidate bets on own vote-getting power
A DuPage County Board hopeful says he's willing to abandon his effort to get a fellow Democrat kicked off the primary ballot if the other candidate accepts an unusual bet.
Thomas Michael Castillo wants fellow District 1 challenger Maria DeAngelis-Vesey to agree to drop out of the county board race if he gets more votes than her during the March 20 Democratic primary. In turn, Castillo says he'll drop out of the race if DeAngelis-Vesey gets more primary votes.
DeAngelis-Vesey said she has no intention of accepting that offer, even if it results in Castillo moving ahead with a formal objection of her nominating petition. Castillo also challenged incumbent board member Rita Gonzalez's nominating paperwork, but dropped that objection on Wednesday.
“I am not agreeing to anything,” DeAngelis-Vesey said after learning about Castillo's proposal. “If he wants to get me thrown off the ballot, go right ahead. I will go door to door and make sure that he never gets a vote.”
DeAngelis-Vesey said she's most surprised that the election drama is happening in an uncontested Democratic primary race.
Local Democratic Party leaders said their plan was to have Castillo of Elmhurst, DeAngelis-Vesey of Elmhurst and Gonzalez of Addison all run in the general election for three District 1 seats on the county board. The trio would face incumbent board members Paul Fichtner and Don Puchalski and newcomer Sam Tornatore — the three Republicans vying for those spots.
But Castillo said he questions whether he and his Democratic colleagues can defeat all three GOP candidates in District 1, which includes all or portions of Addison, Bensenville, Bloomingdale, Elmhurst, Glendale Heights, Itasca, Lombard, Roselle, Villa Park and Wood Dale.
“I think it's beneficial to only have two Democrats against three Republicans in the district,” Castillo said.
Castillo said he gave up his challenge of Gonzalez's nominating petition only because she's an incumbent. He stressed his objection to DeAngelis-Vesey's nominating petition “is not personal.”
“I feel real bad about doing it,” Castillo said. “But this is what's best to get two Democrats elected. That's my main goal.”
DeAngelis-Vesey's nominating petition has 200 signatures — more than the 152 signatures she needed to get on the ballot.
Castillo argues the nominating paperwork is invalid because DeAngelis-Vesey made mistakes on her statement of candidacy. He said DeAngelis-Vesey failed to indicate on the form that she is seeking the Democratic Party's nomination in a primary.
“This is all a strategically loser move on his part,” DeAngelis-Vesey said. “He is trying to get me bumped on a technicality.”
DuPage's electoral board is expected to consider several objections during a Dec. 21 hearing.
Other county board candidates facing challenges to their nominating petitions are District 6 hopeful Tom Sutton of Wayne and District 3 hopeful Joe Wozniak of Naperville, DuPage election officials said. Both are in contested Republican primary races.