Murvine waiting patiently for tie breaker in Island Lake board race

Unlike most other candidates in this week’s election, Island Lake resident Allen Murvine is going to have to wait nearly two weeks to learn if he won or lost.

Stuck in a tie with fellow candidate Charles Cermak for a seat on the Island Lake village board, Murvine’s political future is in limbo until provisional ballots and late-arriving ballots cast by mail are counted by the McHenry and Lake county clerks’ offices on April 19.

And if a tie persists, a coin flip will decide the race.

Murvine insisted he’s not nervous as he waits.

“It has to play out,” he said.

Murvine and Cermak were among six candidates competing for three seats on the Island Lake board. Shannon Fox and Thea Morris already have been declared winners for two of the posts.

Murvine and Cermak were first-time candidates and ran as members of the same slate. Even though they’re facing off for the final trustee seat now, Murvine insisted there’s no tension between them.

“We support each other equally,” he said. “There’s no competition or rivalry there.”

Cermak refused to speak with the Daily Herald for this story.

Fox and Morris placed first and second in the race, unofficial results showed. Murvine and Cermak tied for the third seat. Mary Piekarski and Joe Ptak finished fifth and sixth.

After the winner of the third seat is determined, the new board members will take office in May.

Murvine said neither he nor Cermak are considering conceding before the final count.

“I think it should be in the hands of the voters,” Murvine said.

Election Day ties are rare in Lake County, but there have been a few in recent memory.

In 2009, incumbent Barry MacLean and challenger Jess Ray tied in the race for Mettawa mayor. Ray was declared the winner after late-arriving absentee ballots were counted.

A 2003 race for the North Chicago city council and a 1995 race for the Barrington Park District board also resulted in ties. In both cases, coin flips decided the matter.

Murvine called the Island Lake tie exciting.

Although he was disappointed that more members of his slate didn’t win, Murvine was pleased one will reach the board.

“If we get some representation from our slate, we’ll be happy with that,” he said.

That trustee — whether it’s Cermak or Murvine — will face some significant political challenges. A majority of trustees have been feuding with Mayor Debbie Herrmann over her powers and decisions for the past few months, an extension of boardroom battles that have been going on in the village for years.

Herrmann endorsed Cermak, Murvine and Piekarski and was publicly critical of their three opponents before Election Day.

Murvine said he expects the upcoming turnover will change the dynamic of the board and could end the fighting. Morris and Fox have expressed similar hopes.

Still, Murvine fears things could be rough at first.

“I’m hoping that everyone can come together,” he said. “Let’s get off on the right foot.”