Voss to run for Lake County Board
Mundelein Trustee Terri Voss has announced she’ll run for a seat on the Lake County Board in 2014.
Voss will run as a Republican for the 10th District seat held for nearly 20 years by Diana O’Kelly, also of the Mundelein area.
O’Kelly, a Republican who this spring was elected Fremont Township supervisor, has publicly said she won’t seek another term on the county board.
Voss, a trustee since 2003, has been a prominent voice on Mundelein’s dais, frequently sparring with fellow Trustee Ed Sullivan over a variety of issues.
“I will bring the same high level of energy and honesty to this position that my constituents have learned to expect from me during my 10 years on the Mundelein village board,” Voss said Sunday in an email to the Daily Herald.
A former business owner, Voss said she’s been approached by people from outside Mundelein to help with assorted problems. As a county board representative, she said, “I will be better able to assist with their needs and issues as well as those that affect Mundelein.”
Voss’ term on the village board expires in 2015. If elected to the county board, she pledged to resign her current post.
O’Kelly first was elected to the county board in 1994 and is one of its senior members.
She’s led the high-profile public works and transportation committee for years.
She last was elected to the 10th District seat in November 2012.
She ran unopposed.
Finishing her term on the county board lets voters decide her successor. If she had resigned, the county commissioners would have selected her replacement.
The county board doubles as the Lake County Forest Preserve District board.
The 10th District includes a significant portion of Mundelein and parts of Round Lake Park, Wauconda, Hawthorn Woods and Long Grove.
When the district boundaries were redrawn following the 2010 Census, the new lines gave a significant electoral advantage to Republican candidates.
O’Kelly led the committee that drew the district map.
Lake County Board Chairman Aaron Lawlor on Sunday said he knew O’Kelly wasn’t planning to seek re-election.
He said he’s spoken to other Republicans interested in the post, but none have publicly declared their candidacies.
O’Kelly said she’s aware of other possible GOP hopefuls, too.
A Democratic Party candidate has not surfaced yet.