Cook County Board president and assessor primaries among races to watch Tuesday

Races for Cook County Board president and assessor as well as a few county board races in Lake County are among the local races to watch in Tuesday’s primary elections.

Cook County Board president

The hotly contested Democratic primary between four-term Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and challenger Brendan Reilly has been marked by fallout from problems with a massive countywide technology system overhaul and public safety issues.

Reilly has called implementation of the new property tax billing system by vendor Tyler Technologies “an absolute disaster” that “wreaked havoc” on suburban governments. That includes schools and libraries, some of which had to take out loans with interest while waiting to receive their share of taxes from the county.

But Preckwinkle said before she came into office in 2010, property taxes hadn’t gone out on time for more than 30 years, and no one else tried to fix the complicated system that used outdated technology. Though property tax bills went out late last year, she said the system is now in place and first installment 2025 tax bills have been mailed.

Reilly, a 19-year downtown Chicago alderman, has made a tough-on-crime stance the centerpiece of his campaign, publicizing high-profile failures with the county’s electronic monitoring program and calling for changes to the state’s criminal justice reform law championed by Preckwinkle. She has touted declining murder and violent crime rates while hailing county investments in anti-violence programs.

Cook County assessor

Two-term incumbent Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi is facing a primary challenge from Lyons Township Assessor Pat Hynes.

Elected in 2018, Kaegi has generally been seen as an outsider among Cook County Democrats. It’s the same this election with the county Democratic Party endorsing Hynes.

Hynes has attacked Kaegi for skyrocketing residential property assessments and property tax shifts that have hurt homeowners. Kaegi blames rising residential property tax bills on the taxing bodies and the county’s board of review, which he says has given bigger breaks to commercial property owners than homeowners.

For his part, Kaegi has blasted Hynes for taking money from tax attorneys who handle assessment appeals. Hynes called Kaegi hypocritical, noting real estate ties of his donors.

Lake County board

Primary races for Lake County Board seats range from quiet to unusual.

In District 3, Democratic hopefuls are consultant Wendy Meister of Riverwoods and Jacyln Rodriguez of Libertyville, a registered nurse.

In the Republican primary to represent District 17 along the southwest border of the county, newcomer Joe Salvi faces a write-in challenge from Eleanor Sweet McDonnell, North Barrington’s village president since 2019.

McDonnell, president and CEO of the Remington Group LLC, launched a write-in campaign after incumbent Michael Danforth filed for reelection then withdrew after the deadline. He endorsed Salvi, a Barrington attorney and president of the Lake County Young Republicans.

In the Round Lake area, the Democratic primary in District 16 is uncertain as candidate Juan Beto Ruiz, who is challenging incumbent Esiah Campos, is awaiting a court ruling on whether he’s eligible to run. Ruiz’s name appears on ballots and a ruling declaring him ineligible is under appeal. Depending on how long that takes, the outcome of Tuesday’s vote may not be immediately known.

Both are Round Lake Beach residents. Campos is a Navy veteran and pension analyst for Teamsters union Local 705. Ruiz is an IT/data manager for Grayslake Elementary District 46.