Ossyra, Ramey and Smith win township primary races

Voters in Republican primaries Tuesday in Naperville, Wayne and Winfield townships picked their party's nominees for the April 4 general election.

Some of the winners will face Democratic opponents next month, but many effectively have won their seats because they will be unopposed.

Here's a look at the primary results:

Naperville Township

Supervisor Rachel Ossyra narrowly held off a challenge from Walter Reilly, according to unofficial final vote totals.

Ossyra received 1,276 votes, while Reilly got 1,141.

The victory means Ossyra can focus on an April 4 challenge from Democrat Eddie Bedford. She said Tuesday that she plans to continue work toward "modernizing township government."

"When you consolidate and reduce redundancies, you actually create an opportunity to improve services," Ossyra said.

Naperville Township Clerk Barry Greenberg defeated challenger Tom Laz, with Greenberg totaling 1,608 votes to Laz's 639. Greenberg now will face Democrat Nate Sippel in April.

Assessor Warren Dixon III and Highway Commissioner Stan Wojtasiak ran unopposed in the primary, but each will face a challenger in the general election. Dixon is opposed by write-in candidate Gary Vician, while Wojtasiak faces Democrat Richard Novinger.

Among a crowded field of 10 Republicans seeking four trustee seats, incumbent Paul Santucci came in first, newcomer Heather Bejda placed second, incumbent Kerry Malm finished third and newcomer Jim Ruhl came in fourth, according to unofficial results.

They topped fellow Republican trustee hopefuls Bill Lueck, Catherine Hanzelin, Dan Porter, Kurt Dorr, Chris Jacks and Ernest Kovacs.

The top four trustees face a full slate of four Democratic trustee hopefuls in the April 4 election, featuring Loretta Burke, John Waller, Glenn Jones and Julie Federico.

Wayne Township

Former state Rep. Randy Ramey will spend the next chapter of his political career as Wayne Township's next supervisor.

Ramey on Tuesday defeated fellow Republican Art Pierscionek to become the GOP nominee for the top township post. With all 63 precincts reporting, unofficial results show Ramey with 1,037 votes and Pierscionek with 658.

Ramey, who won't have a Democratic opponent in April, said he's looking forward to serving township residents for the next four years.

"It means a lot to me because I started my career as a township trustee and served there for seven years," he said. "So my political career has come full circle."

Ramey, of Carol Stream, said during the campaign that his goals include keeping township government effective and efficient. He also wants to educate the community more about everything the township has to offer.

"It's a new challenge," he said. "I look forward to making Wayne Township the best township in DuPage County."

Meanwhile, GOP voters picked Gregory Tamburello to challenge Highway Commissioner Martin McManamon, who is the only Democrat on the April ballot in Wayne Township.

Tamburello beat fellow Republican Mike Mascow to secure the nomination. Unofficial results show Tamburello with 876 votes and Mascow with 697 votes.

In the race for four township trustee seats, Nic Zito, Tom Feltes, Daniel Brinkman and Jackie Hayden won the GOP nomination. Unofficial results show Zito with 1,350 votes, Feltes with 1,323, Brinkman with 1,122 and Hayden with 928.

The fifth candidate in the race, William Waghorne, had 897 votes.

Incumbent Assessor Michael Musson and township clerk candidate Brandi Fike Ramundo ran unopposed.

Winfield Township

Dona Smith secured another term as Winfield Township supervisor on Tuesday by defeating three challengers in the Republican primary.

Smith beat Dave Tornga, Robert Greer and Bonnie Hollingsworth to win the GOP nomination. With all 37 precincts reporting, Smith had 701 votes, according to unofficial totals. Tornga, Greer and Hollingsworth received 565 votes, 487 and 95 votes, respectively.

Because no Democrats are seeking office in Winfield Township in April, the primary decided who will represent the township for the next four years.

In the race for township clerk, incumbent Clifford Brown lost to challenger Nicole Prater. Unofficial results show Prater with 1,016 votes and Brown with 732 votes.

Meanwhile, the winners for four trustee seats are incumbent Donald Voelz, Michael Guglielmi, Barbara Alekna and Zachary Halley. Unofficial results show Voelz, Guglielmi, Alekna and Halley with 1,042, 1,022, 976 and 959 votes, respectively.

The two other candidates in the race - Mary Ann Manna and Gerald Ruzicka - received 883 votes and 764 votes, respectively.

Township Assessor Mark Malay and Highway Commissioner John Dusza ran unopposed.