Five judge candidates get support for Kane Co. election

The candidates running for the pair of judicial subcircuit seats in Kane County have been rated by their peers, who gave favorable reviews to five of the nine contenders.

The Illinois State Bar Association polled 1,363 attorneys -- 352 who returned ballots -- on the legal merits of the hopefuls vying for the bench in new subcircuits in Elgin and Aurora.

This is Kane County's first subcircuit election since state lawmakers ordered the 16th Judicial Circuit -- which covers Kane, Kendall and DeKalb counties -- to divide into five subcircuits, with additions in Elgin and Aurora.

Kane County Board member Paul Greviskes, Aurora attorney Herb Hill, Aurora Township Supervisor Jim Murphy, Aurora attorney Renee Robinson and Aurora branch court prosecutor Mark Wade make up the Democrats seeking their party nod for the Aurora subcircuit.

The candidates were rated as "recommended" based on whether 65 percent of survey participants said they met the requirements for office. Candidates who did not receive enough favorable votes were rated "not recommended."

Earning a "recommended" rating were Greviskes, Murphy and Wade. Hill and Robinson were rated as "not recommended," according to the poll.

The lone Republican on the slate, Aurora lawyer Fred Morelli, received a "recommended" rating.

In the Elgin subcircuit race, former Kane County State's Attorney David Akemann is running against Patricia Piper Golden, a sitting 16th Judicial Circuit judge, for the Republican nomination. John Noverini, a Kane County board member and a former judge and Carpentersville trustee, is on the Democratic ticket.

Attorneys in the poll scored Golden as "recommended," and Akemann and Noverini as "not recommended."

The results of the bar association poll typically provide the only controversies in judicial campaigns, which often are devoid of hot-button issues, and candidates don't voice their opinions to preserve their legal impartiality.

Attorneys who take part in the poll are asked to respond only if they have knowledge of a candidate's qualifications for judicial office.

The ballot has seven questions about a candidates legal ability, integrity, impartiality judicial temperament.

The advisory poll is mailed to all state bar members in the circuit or district where lawyers are seeking election. Licensed attorneys who are not state bar members also can take part of they request a ballot.

For more complete results of the poll and other candidate evaluations, go online to www.isba.org/YouBeTheJudge.