Elgin Township appoints new clerk
Laura Wallett, a former Republican candidate for Kane County auditor, was named Wednesday to serve as Elgin Township clerk.
Wallett, 42, of South Elgin, is also the lone Republican candidate running for the post in the February primary. She might be sworn in as early as Thursday, and would serve the remainder of the term through April, Elgin Township Supervisor Annette Miller said.
Frank Imhoff of Elgin is the only Democratic candidate for clerk.
The seat was vacated Dec. 10 by Kurt Kojzarek, who was elected in November to the Kane County Board. Kojzarek is a Republican, so by law, he had to be replaced by a Republican.
Wallett sent out a news release the morning of Dec. 10 announcing she would be sworn in as clerk. But later that day, the board went into executive session and came out announcing no appointment would be made.
Wallett said Miller had called her to ask if she’d accept the appointment and be available for a swearing in ceremony Dec. 10. “I respect their decision, for whatever reason they had to defer it,” Wallett said.
Miller said the board failed to reach a consensus about Wallett’s appointment, and also wanted to give others the chance to submit letters of interest. None were received, she said. In the end, “(Wallett) seemed the most logical choice,” Miller said.
Kane County Board member Mike Kenyon, who supported Wallett’s appointment, said he thought the early news release played a role in the delay. “It probably didn’t make some people happy,” he said. “It’s a simple mistake.”
The board had 60 days from Kojzarek’s resignation to appoint a new clerk, Miller said.
Wallett is a former community activist with the local chapter of Americans for Prosperity, a conservative group that advocates fiscal restraint.
“I’ve taken a great interest in what’s going on in the community and in serving the residents of both the county and the township,” she said. “For me it’s about wanting to look where our tax dollars are going and be a better steward of those tax dollars.”