Zaruba takes DuPage sheriff's GOP primary

Incumbent John Zaruba soundly defeated challenger Mike Quiroz in the race for the Republican nomination for DuPage County sheriff.

Then he apparently didn't want to talk about it.

With all 749 precincts unofficially tallied, Zaruba had more than 81 percent of the vote to the roughly 18 percent garnered by Quiroz, a retired deputy who challenged his one-time boss. A total of 87,654 ballots were counted.

So far, no Democratic candidate for sheriff has emerged to face Zaruba in the November general election. On Tuesday night, local Democratic leaders said they haven't decided if they will slate someone.

"In all likelihood, it would be difficult at this point," said DuPage Democratic Party Chairman Bob Peickert, adding the party has until April to find a candidate.

Zaruba didn't return multiple telephone messages seeking comment about his victory. When reached by phone, his campaign manager said he was unable to locate Zaruba at his election night party.

Quiroz also didn't return phone messages after his first bid for public office ended with a crushing defeat. During the campaign, Quiroz ran a grass-roots campaign using e-mail and a Web site to try to connect with voters.

But that wasn't enough to overcome Zaruba's name recognition and highly visible campaign.

Zaruba said during the campaign he was seeking re-election to continue what he started in 1997 when he was first appointed to the post. Through the years, Zaruba said, he has focused on "finding innovative, efficient ways to protect the people I serve."

Zaruba was elected to the job in 1998, 2002 and 2006. When he won the GOP primary four years ago, he secured nearly 72 percent of the vote.

Quiroz based his campaign on the belief that his years as a sheriff's deputy and experience as a business owner qualified him to lead the department. He served in the sheriff's office from 1979 to 2003.

Quiroz said one of his goals was to increase patrols countywide. He also vowed to review the budget and try to cut spending.

Meanwhile, Zaruba said his department worked with less for years until a quarter-percent sales tax increase was enacted two years ago as part the state legislature's mass transit bailout package. The money DuPage received from that sales tax hike allowed Zaruba to fill more than 40 deputy positions and reinstate programs like the Sheriff's Work Alternative Program.

Zaruba, who has been with the sheriff's department since 1974, rose to the top spot in 1997 when he was selected to finish the remaining term of retiring Sheriff Richard Doria.

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<li><a href="/news/politics/elections/2010/primary/race/?id=188">Complete coverage of the DuPage Co. sheriff race</a></li>

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