Both incumbents lose in College of DuPage

The race for four seats on the College of DuPage board of trustees was one of the few ballot issues that involved almost all the county's voters Tuesday.

With 775 of 787 precincts reporting, unofficial results indicate Kim Savage, Nancy Svoboda and Allison O'Donnell won the three 6-year seats and Sandy Kim won a three-way race for a 2-year term.

Voters booted the only two incumbents in the race - board Chairman Mike McKinnon and trustee Mark Nowak.

The race was one of the most heated of the election cycle when it began with an outgoing trustee challenging the candidacies of three of the four challengers who were endorsed by a college faculty organization. The challenges failed.

The faculty supported Savage, Svoboda and Kim. But their other choice, Tom Wendorf, was edged out by O'Donnell, who had far more support in the Cook County portion of the community college district.

"I know it's a small area, but I go there and go to events in the Cook County portion a lot and I think people remembered that," O'Donnell said.

Faculty leaders said they became so involved because they believe the current board has become uncooperative and doesn't include faculty, staff or student input on campuswide decisions. Teachers union groups donated nearly $60,000 to the faculty organization that helped campaign for their picks.

Meanwhile, candidates not endorsed by the faculty group said the instructors wanted to stack the board with friendly faces ahead of the next teacher's contract negotiations. The COD teacher's contract expires in 2011.

McKinnon became a lightning rod during the campaign as well. The board chairman had his defamation lawsuit against three former board members thrown out of court. They accused him of sexual harassment in a local newspaper. He is asking the college to pay for his legal fees stemming from the failed bid.

Three of the new board members have direct ties to COD. Svoboda is a former instructor there and was the top vote-getter in both races. Kim earned a degree from the college and will now have to give up her job in the theater box office as a result of her victory. And O'Donnell is currently enrolled in classes at the college.

Savage works in the higher education field and lost a bid two years ago for the same seat.