Decisive victories in Kane judicial subcircuit contest

Jim Murphy seized the advantage Tuesday over his four Democratic rivals in the primary for the judicial subcircuit seat in Aurora.

Murphy, the Aurora Township supervisor, received the most votes overall -- 2,383 -- with all 78 precincts reporting in Aurora and parts of Kane County, according to unofficial election results.

Murphy, who was unavailable for comment, had 434 votes from 12 Kane County precincts and 1,949 votes from the 66 precincts in Aurora.

The field of Democrats included Kane County Board member Paul Greviskes, Aurora attorneys Herb Hill and Renee Robinson, and Aurora branch court prosecutor Mark Wade.

Greviskes had 1,595 votes among the reporting precincts, Hill had 1,198, Robinson had 2,060 and Wade had 1,735, according to the unofficial election tally.

Murphy, 56, likely will face Aurora attorney Fred Morelli Jr., 66, the lone Republican on the ballot, in November for a seat on the bench.

"We'll be better prepared," Morelli said of his opponent in the general election. "My goal in this campaign is to go to the house of every single registered voter, and I'm well on my way."

Tuesday's election marked Kane County's first judicial subcircuit race since Illinois lawmakers in 2005 directed the 16th Judicial Circuit to divide into five subcircuits, with additions in Elgin and Aurora.

The 16th Judicial Circuit includes Kane, Kendall and DeKalb counties. The creation of the subcircuits has been billed as a vehicle to increase the number of minorities on the bench.

Hill and Robinson, who are black, were the only minority candidates on the slate in the 1st Subcircuit, which covers parts of Aurora, North Aurora and Montgomery.

With an increase in minorities in Aurora and Elgin's 2nd Subcircuit -- which covers northeastern Kane County -- it is important for the judiciary to reflect a diverse community, Chief Judge Don Hudson said.

"In the Aurora subcircuit, we are seeing more minority candidates, which is what it was intended to do," Hudson said.

Kane County Clerk John Cunningham said the Democrats in the Aurora subcircuit race appeared to benefit from an increase in voters due to high interest in the presidential primary.