Brassea, Amadio 5th Ward Race Is One To Watch In Chicago Heights

CHICAGO HEIGHTS, IL — Did you see the campaign flyer that accuses George Brassea of holding a patronage job and standing half-naked in underwear-like wrestling shorts?

The Chicago Heights candidate for 5th Ward Alderman’s response? True. And “I wish I had that six pack.”

Seriously, though, the truth he wants you to know is about his opponent, Rich Amadio. The incumbent, Brassea said, has missed at least 20 council meetings during the past year — as Brassea he reads off from minutes of past meetings on the Chicago Heights website in a YouTube video.

“Truancy is not something you can get away with the workplace, so why can Amadio get away with it here?” Brassea said. “If I am elected, I will not miss 20 meetings.”

Amadio defended his record.

““Over eight years, there have been a minimum of 192 council meetings - not including special council meetings - and I’ve attended the overwhelming majority of the meetings,” he wrote in an email statement.“Additionally, over the eight years on the council, I’ve attended hundreds of community meetings with constituents to discuss ward and city issues, which makes me one of the hardest working aldermen in Chicago Heights.”

Brassea, 31, is looking to #flipthe5th, as he and supporters write, millennial-style, on social media. Chicago Heights needs to be led by younger, fresher candidates with new ideas, he said, and he fits the bill.

“I won’t work for the mayor,” he said, referring to the Unity Party, both Amadio’s and Mayor David Gonzalez’s slate, and how members often vote the same way. “I’ll vote for what is best for residents.”

This election season was a tough one in Chicago Heights, which is no stranger to political shenanigans. The city heard objections to the petitions for 14 candidates, Brassea among them. He prevailed after a court challenge and his name remains on the ballot for the April 2 election.

Such challenges are a common tactic to keep people off the ballot during municipal elections, and to be sure, it cost Brassea time and money. But Brassea, who funds his campaign through personal debt and small-dollar donations, is not daunted. “I have the support,” he said.

The December 2018 quarterly campaign contribution filing report showed he had $6,289 on hand. Current numbers will not be available until after the election because of the state’s reporting requirements.

Brassea might laugh about the attack ad that hit in March, but he takes the allegations seriously. They are misleading, he said. Brassea explained that it shows him in a costume -- he once dressed up as former professional wrestler CM Punk for Halloween. Brassea is a therapist, not a wrestler.

Second, it pulls statements he made in response to other attacks out of context. At 14, Brassea got a janitorial job at a school district through his mother’s school-board connections. He goofed off a lot, as many teens do — and learned his lesson. He does not need and will not take jobs offered through political connections, he said, and will not waste taxpayer’s money.

Brassea also is running alone as an independent. Arthur Wiggins, who is portrayed in the campaign literature along with Brassea, is a mayoral candidate, who also is running alone as an independent.

Amadio, a retired firefighter, was elected alderman in 2011. He earns $12,000 in that part-time position. He also serves as the director of building and grounds for Bloom Township School District 206, where he earns $105,000 a year. He held a similar position at District 170, and is a former member of that district’s school board. Amadio also served as president of the Chicago Heights Park District.

In 2013, Amadio was convicted of battery for breaking a colleague’s thumb during a altercation while he was on the job at District 170.

He is credited, through the unity party, with helping to attract new jobs and infrastructure to the city, and for bringing new funding to local high schools. On the party’s website, he pledged
“to work tirelessly to expand on neighborhood infrastructure and street improvements and delivery of city services for the residents of the 5th Ward.”

Brassea’s first steps as alderman, if he is elected, would be to make government transparent by making all ordinance and proposals text publicly available online and by recording and streaming meetings live. He has pledged to fight for elderly people’s rights. He also will strive to restructure the way the city handles business and economic development so that the city can be innovative in attracting jobs to lower its unemployment rate.

The people of Chicago Heights have struggled far too long, he said, and he's the right man to change that.

He does not, however, plan to wear his CM Punk suit.