John Idleburg Wins Lake Co. Sheriff's Race: Unofficial Results

LAKE COUNTY, IL — Democratic incumbent John Idleburg has been elected to a second term as Lake County Sheriff, according to unofficial vote tallies.

Idleburg lead Republican challenger Mark Vice, a long-time deputy with the Lake County Sheriff's Office, with 121,415 votes compared to Vice's 92,820 votes, according to unofficial vote totals Wednesday morning. The tallies include early voting and vote-by-mail results. The Lake County Clerk's Office still needs to tally late arriving vote-by-mail and provisional ballots.

Prior to being elected as sheriff in 2018, Idleburg, of Zion, worked for decades as a federal investigator. Idleburg narrowly edged Curran out of office in 2018, winning with just 137 more votes than Curran.

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During his run for sheriff, Idleburg pointed to his successes during his first term in office as reasons he should be re-elected. Among his strengths, he said, included launching an app that allows residents to fill out a police report, the addition of six police dogs, and a pilot program that pairs mental-health professionals with officers, the Lake County News-Sun is reporting. He's also stressed the importance of transparency and worked to be more accessible to the public.

The SAFE-T Act, which will go into effect in Illinois on Jan. 1, has been a hot topic this election. While many aspects of the 764-page act have already taken effect since lawmakers approved it in the final hours of the January 2021 lame duck session, the provision that eliminates cash bail and restructures the bond hearing process — the Pretrial Fairness Act — has generated the most controversy.

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During his campaign for re-election, Idleburg said he's had to correct misleading information that's been circulating regarding the SAFE-T Act. Idleburg has heard from residents concerned over a false claim they believe will become a reality in the New Year: that officers won't be able to address someone who is trespassing on private property, according to the Daily Herald.

"(If) you said that this person is a threat to you and your family, that individual will be detained and they will be escorted off the property," Idleburg said.

The new law requires officers to ticket those accused of low-level offenses but they still can arrest them if they pose a threat to the public, according to an Injustice Watch fact check.

Patch.com sent candidate surveys to Vice and Idleburg, but they did not respond.

Jonah Meadows has contributed to this article.