McLeod, board incumbents to seek 2021 re-election in Hoffman Estates

Nearly 20 months before election day, Hoffman Estates Mayor Bill McLeod and four other elected officials say they will seek re-election when their terms end in April 2021.

McLeod's fellow incumbents who make up the slate include trustees Karen Arnet, Michael Gaeta and Karen Mills, along with Village Clerk Bev Romanoff.

McLeod said he's announcing so early because he learned of rumors that he wouldn't run again and others are lining up for his office.

He said he heard the police department's community relations and public information officer, Sgt. Mark Mueller, is among the possible candidates.

Mueller, who plans to retire before the 2021 election, declined to say whether he plans to run, but added that he doesn't live in the village at the present time.

"After I retire I will always look for ways to stay active in the community, but right now I enjoy the job I have and am dedicated to finishing my career and nothing else," Mueller said.

McLeod was appointed as a village trustee in 1980 and then elected to that position several times through the '80s and '90s.

After the death of then-Mayor Michael O'Malley in September 2000, McLeod was appointed acting mayor by his fellow trustees. He has been elected mayor five times since 2001.

Wishing to see current projects to completion, such as the redevelopment of the former AT&T corporate campus into the Bell Works "Metroburb," are among the reasons McLeod said he feels ready to commit to a re-election bid.

"There's a lot of work to be done," McLeod said. "I enjoy it and am still passionate about it."

Arnet, Gaeta, Mills and Romanoff said they are committed to running again because they believe the current village board is keeping Hoffman Estates in good shape and its members work well together.

McLeod said a fundraiser for the 2021 re-election campaign is being organized for late October.