Parlier Vs. Kauffman In Oswego Village President Race: IL Election

OSWEGO, IL — Former Trustee Ryan Kauffman, a Democrat, is looking to unseat Republican Troy Parlier as village president in Oswego.

In Tuesday's consolidated election, voters will decide whether Kauffman, who served from 2015 to 2019, will lead the village for the next four years or Parlier will serve a second term. They'll also choose between six candidates running for three open trustee seats on the Oswego Village Board.

James Marter II and Terry Olson, whose terms expire this year, are the incumbents in Tuesday's election. Jason Kapus, a Republican, and Democrats Karin McCarthy-Lange, Luis Perez and Andrew Torres are also vying for the spots.

Candidates Marter, Olson and Kapus are running alongside Parlier in the election. All four were the top vote-getters in the primary election Feb. 28. Parlier came away with 53 percent of the vote, compared to challenger Brian Thomas's 46 percent, according to official totals.

Thomas currently serves as a trustee on the Village Board, his term expiring this month.

"It has been an honor and a privilege serving the residents of Oswego these past four years," Parlier's campaign site reads. "We have accomplished a great deal working together. Our future is very bright and we’re just getting started!"

About the Village President Candidates

Parlier cited "efficiently" managing the village's budget, eliminating wasteful spending and reaching a historic high with the village treasury as successes during his first four years in office.

In his time in office, water rates have been cut by 4 percent, and the village's property tax rate has been lowered for four consecutive years, Patch reported.

"I want to keep the financial stability we now enjoy in place for the long term future," he told Shaw Local.

Parlier lists multiple ways in which the village prospered during his presidency. After promising to use the "collective abilities, strengths, efforts, and character of the good residents of Oswego," Parlier attended and volunteered at hundreds of public events, according to his website. He also made note of the more than 20 miles of roadway that have been resurfaced, the alley system in downtown Oswego that has been reconstructed, and the replacement of more than 800 parkway trees.

Moving forward, if elected, Parlier said the local government will continue to invest heavily in the Oswego Police Department. The village's crime rate has decreased by 41 percent since he took office, according to his campaign.

"Yes, we’ve accomplished a lot over these past four years but there is much more work to be done and challenges to navigate through," Parlier wrote on his campaign website. "I'm asking you to support my candidacy for Oswego Village President once again by voting for me for four more years. Together we will continue to build a great and prosperous Oswego."

Kauffman, an Oswego resident of 15 years, said he's running for office to bring the same passion he has for Oswego to the office of village president, according to his campaign website.

"Whether serving as Trustee or as President, my main goals will always be to ensure we have a safe, family friendly, walkable, shoppable downtown," said Kauffman, whose full-time job is working as a technology and business consultant.

In the "Why I'm Running" section on his website, Kauffman only mentions a thriving downtown Oswego as his main goal when serving as trustee or president.

"I firmly believe that our downtown is the beating heart of the community, and I want to see it thrive," he wrote.

Aside from trustee in Oswego, Kauffman has served on the Police Commission, where he helped hire "several exceptional" officers. When serving on the Village Board, he continued to help the Oswego Police Department by being a part of the team that built the new headquarters, according to his campaign.

"The new Police Department stands as testament to the transparency of local government, as well as the comfort that Oswego Residents can take in knowing that Oswego Police are on the job," he said.

About the Trustee Candidates

Marter, a 2006 graduate of Oswego High School, said, if elected, he will look to cut reckless spending and excessive taxation. He plans to "stop the current mentality of the Oswego Village Board of finding new taxes to spend at our expense," according to his campaign.

Besides trustee, Marter's experience in government includes serving on the Planning and Zoning Commission. Professionally, he has spent more than 10 years working in information technology, including as a data analyst, director of IT and web designer.

Kapus has spent the past two years serving on the Planning and Zoning Commission. He is a licensed plumber and the co-owner of Aquaduct Plumbing Service, which he runs with his wife, Vanessa.

If elected, Kapus said he will work "within village budgets and take a devotional stance to village timelines and goals set by the village board to achieve what is in the best interest for our community."

"My service, if elected by you is to be deeply involved in the many dynamic changes that are evolving around us with respects to the betterment of our growing community," he said on his campaign site. "I will bring you the aptitude, strength, and the experience with a no-nonsense approach that will always benefit the resident taxpayer directly."

Olson received the most votes, 787, among trustee candidates in the primary election, according to the Kendall County Clerk's Office. An Oswego resident of more than 17 years, he volunteers with extracurricular activities and the band at Oswego High School. In his career, Olsen works as a heavy equipment operator working on excavations, demolitions and underground utilities, among other things.

"I’m a small business owner who values integrity, perseverance, and dedication, who is willing to work very hard to get a job well done for the good of Oswego families," he said on his website.

McCarthy-Lange previously served as a trustee on the Village Board from 2015 to 2019. She currently works as a secretary and executive assistant at Naperville's Indian Prairie School District 204.

An Oswego resident of 20 years, McCarthy-Lange has volunteered and worked across town, serving organizations including the Oswego Chamber of Commerce, Inspiring Women of Oswego, Kiwanis Club of Oswego, and the Oswego Cultural Arts Commission, among others. She currently serves on the Kendall County Regional Planning Commission.

"I consider Oswego my hometown because this is the longest I have ever lived in one place!" she told Kendall County Democrats. "I want to see Oswego be the best it can be, and we deserve to have a village board who truly wishes to serve their community. I will serve with integrity, transparency, sincerity, and without an agenda."

Perez has also previously served on the Board from 2015 to 2021. Before he was elected a trustee, he was appointed to or volunteered for various committees, including for Oswego School District 308 and on Rush Copley Medical Center's board of directors, where he has served since 2017.

A resident of 23 years, Perez works in business development at Ace Hardware Corporation.

He said he is running to give back to his community and to use his background to "once again provide high value and productivity in this role for the residents of Oswego," according to Shaw Local.

Torres, an Oswego High School alum, is running for Village Board to "put his hard-work ethic, experience and commitment to service," according to his campaign.

He said he believes spending residents' "hard-earned tax dollars ... requires integrity, transparency and accountability."