Stage set for DuPage County board and sheriff races in the fall

There will be a new sheriff in town come November in DuPage County.

But many of those seeking seats on the county board this fall will be familiar faces - especially on the Republican side.

Here's a look at the winners of the county's contested primaries for sheriff and county board:

<h3 class="breakHead">Sheriff</h3>

Longtime Sheriff John Zaruba is stepping down at the end of the year after more than two decades heading the department.

The two men seeking to replace him in November will be Republican James Mendrick and Democrat Gregory Whalen.

Mendrick garnered 60 percent of the vote Tuesday to easily defeat Frank Bibbiano for the GOP nomination.

Mendrick, of Woodridge, is a patrol commander with the sheriff's office and a 21-year veteran of the department. Bibbiano, of Elmhurst, is the undersheriff, an 18-year veteran of the office and second in command to Zaruba.

Whalen ran unopposed Tuesday in the Democratic primary.

<h3 class="breakHead">County board</h3>

<h3 class="breakHead">District 1</h3>

Incumbent Sam Tornatore of Roselle was the top vote-getter in the three-way GOP race for two seats in county board District 1, receiving 45 percent of the vote.

He'll be joined on the fall ballot by Dino Gavanes of Itasca, who narrowly edged Paul DeMichele of Bensenville. Gavanes won 27.88 percent of the vote and DeMichele won 27.05 percent - a difference of just 125 votes.

They will face two Democrats who ran unopposed Tuesday: Zahra Suratwala and Ashley Selmon.

The district covers all or portions of Addison, Bensenville, Bloomingdale, Elmhurst, Glendale Heights, Itasca, Lombard, Roselle, Villa Park and Wood Dale.

<h3 class="breakHead">District 2</h3>

The only Democrat on the 18-member county board, Elizabeth Chaplin of Downers Grove, cruised to an easy primary victory with 49 percent of the vote in a three-way race for two seats.

She'll be joined on the ballot by Arlene Kendorski of Downers Grove, who garnered 26 percent of the vote to edge Claire Goldenberg of Lisle, who received 24.9 percent.

In November, the two will face Republicans Pete DiCianni and Steve Nero, who were unopposed in the GOP primary.

The district covers all or portions of Addison, Clarendon Hills, Downers Grove, Elmhurst, Hinsdale, Lisle, Lombard, Naperville, Oak Brook, Oakbrook Terrace, Villa Park, Westmont and Wheaton.

<h3 class="breakHead">District 3</h3>

Republican incumbent Greg Hart of Hinsdale, who was appointed to the board in 2017, and Downers Grove Mayor Martin Tully won their party's nod in a three-way race for two seats with 40 percent and 32.3 percent of the vote respectively. Woodridge Trustee Greg Abbott finished out of the money with 27.6 percent of the vote.

Hart and Tully will face Julie Renehan and John Basco, who were the top vote-getters in the three-way Democratic primary.

Renehan, a Hinsdale attorney, captured 50 percent of the vote and Basco, a Downers Grove teacher, won 26 percent. A Burr Ridge consultant, Mehr Qayyum, fell short with 24 percent.

The district covers all or portions of Bolingbrook, Burr Ridge, Clarendon Hills, Darien, Downers Grove, Hinsdale, Lemont, Naperville, Westmont, Willowbrook and Woodridge.

<h3 class="breakHead">District 4</h3>

Republican incumbent Grant Eckhoff and newcomer Christopher Zaruba, both of Wheaton, emerged on top of a six-person race for two seats with 26.9 percent and 23.5 percent of the vote respectively. Newcomer Elizabeth Tatro, also of Wheaton, finished third with 20.3 percent of the vote.

Eckhoff and Zaruba, who are both attorneys, will face off in November against Mary FitzGerald Ozog and Hadiya Afzal, who won the Democratic Party nod with 46 percent and 30 percent of the vote in a three-way race.

Ozog, of Glen Ellyn, is a school board member in Glenbard High School District 87. Afzal is a student.

The district covers all or parts of Addison, Bloomingdale, Carol Stream, Glen Ellyn, Glendale Heights, Lisle, Lombard, Wheaton and Winfield.

<h3 class="breakHead">District 6</h3>

Republican incumbents Jim Zay, a Carol Stream businessman, and Kevin Wiley, a colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve from West Chicago, easily won their party's nod for two seats in a three-way race. Zay garnered 44 percent of the vote and Wiley 37 percent.

They'll face Democrats Sheila Rutledge and Erica Green, who won their party's three-way primary for two seats. Rutledge, a photographer from Warrenville, captured 43 percent of the vote and Green, a medical professional from Bloomingdale, garnered 39.3 percent.

The district covers all or parts of Aurora, Bartlett, Bloomingdale, Carol Stream, Glendale Heights, Hanover Park, Naperville, Roselle, St. Charles, Warrenville, Wayne, West Chicago, Wheaton and Winfield.