Newcomer Patterson to join Wauconda school board

Three incumbents will be joined by a new face on the Wauconda Unit School District 118 board.

With all 17 precincts, early voting and mail-ins tallied Tuesday night, the winners were incumbents Deby Dato, Carey McHugh and Thomas A. Weber Sr. and newcomer David A. Patterson. Incumbent Jonathan Feryance lost his re-election bid by less than 100 votes. The five candidates were in the race for four, 4-year terms.

Unofficial results showed Dato placed first with 1,662 votes; McHugh had 1,652 votes; Weber had 1,530 votes; and Patterson had 1,371 votes. Feryance, who joined the board in 2011, rounded out the ballot with 1,265 votes.

Patterson, a first-time candidate with five grandchildren, ran a student-focused campaign, citing his desires to “make sure (students) have the best education possible and that they feel safe in their schools” and that “the teachers of this district have the tools they need to help their students to prepare for life in the future.”

Funding and campus security were among the other issues the candidates discussed during the campaign.