Electoral Reform Referendums In The Lead: Skokie Election Results

SKOKIE, IL — Three binding voter-initiated referendums at the end of the ballot that asked whether Skokie voters want to shift away a system of partisan elections for village trustees elected at-large every four years are all in the lead.

According to unofficial results from the Cook County Clerk, all three referendum questions were approved by at least 1,100 votes, with 100 percent of precincts reporting as of around 11 p.m. Tuesday. Find updated results below as they come in.

About 18,700 of Skokie's approximately 45,400 registered voters cast ballots in this year's midterm elections, for a turnout rate of more than 41 percent, according to the clerk's office.

The first question asked, "Shall candidates for Mayor, Clerk, and Village Trustee of the Village of Skokie be elected at nonpartisan primary and general elections, beginning with the Consolidated Primary and the Consolidated General elections to be held on February 25, 2025 and April 1, 2025, respectively?"

Nonpartisan elections could threaten the Skokie Caucus Party near monopoly on local government. Since 1965, the party has dominated local elections and often runs a slate of candidates unopposed. Its leadership has been the only vocal opposition to the referendums.

The second question asked, "Shall the Village of Skokie adopt a system of staggered four-year terms and biennial elections for Village Trustees, beginning with the Consolidated Primary and the Consolidated General elections to be held on February 25, 2025 and April 1, 2025, respectively?"

A shift to staggered terms would mean trustees would be on the ballot in local elections every two years, as is the practice with many area school, library and village boards.

Mayor George Van Dusen, in a letter to the community, suggested incumbent village trustees would always lose or never seek reelection in such a system.

"Changeover of trustees every two years would result in a Board with half its members on a perpetual learning curve," Van Dusen said.

The third question asked, "Shall the Village of Skokie adopt a system of hybrid elections for Village Trustees, in which 2 of 6 Village Trustees are elected at-large and 4 of 6 Village Trustees are elected from districts, beginning with the Consolidated Primary and the Consolidated General elections to be held on February 25, 2025 and April 1, 2025, respectively?"

Implementing "hybrid elections" in the village would mean a pair of trustees would remain elected by all Skokie voters, but four others would have to be geographically distributed throughout the village.

According to materials produced by the pro-referendum group Skokie Alliance for Electoral Reform, the vast majority of candidates put forward by the Skokie Caucus Party and elected to the village board in the last 20 years have lived in the wealthier northeastern areas of the village.

The Caucus Party portrayed the election of four district-level trustees as "wards," and Van Dusen suggested such a hybrid system would "cause ongoing, persistent anger within our community."

At least two former village trustees elected as Caucus Party members have publicly endorsed the three reform referendums.

Michael Gelder, a lifetime member of the Skokie Caucus Party, a former member of the Skokie Board of Health, Zoning Board of Appeals and a three-term elected Skokie Trustee, and Ilonka Ulrich, who served on the village board from 2013 to 2021, encouraged voters to support the ballot measures in a pair of Skokie Patch Op-Eds.

Read more:
Skokie Caucus Party, Mayor Van Dusen Campaign Against Election Reforms
Electoral Referendums Take Aim At Skokie Caucus Party's One-Party Rule
Mayor Van Dusen Moves To Block Voter-Initiated Referendums From Ballot
Skokie Mayor Withdraws Referendum Proposal After Protest

Village of Skokie Referendum Unofficial Election Results for Nov. 8, 2022