I was so busy last night laying out who had filed for what and some preliminary observations that I didn’t get around to posting press releases from candidates with well planned campaigns.

As regular readers will know, McHenry County Blog tries to replicate the days of old when a candidate would send a press rele3ased to the Crystal Lake Herald, Woodstock Daily Sentinel, McHenry Plain Dealer, Harvard Herald, Marengo Republican, the Fox River Clarion, the Barrington Review, Huntley Farmside, etc., and, because they needed copy to put around their ads, the press release got published.

The upside for candidates is obvious, but there is a benefit for the democratic process as well.

Now, candidates have to speak through the filter of the dominate dailies.

They are lucky to get their names mentioned in a newspaper five times,

• once when they announce,
• a response to a questionnaire, if they are running for an important enough office,
• an article listing who is running right before the election,
• in an editorial endorsement (if they are endorsed) and
• in an election results article.

The last mention, of course, is useless as far as candidacies go.

So, if you are a candidate, send me your press releases.  Unless it’s a night as busy as yesterday evening’s, you’ll soon find yours posted on McHenry County Blog, which is rapidly indexed by various search engines and does not disappear within a few days.

With that introduction, here is a press release from McHenry County Board candidate Scott Summers, who is running in District 6 as a Democrat:

Scott Summers Enters County

  Board Race as a Democrat

Today, I filed for the Democratic Party primary as a candidate for McHenry County Board, District 6. I also seek to become the Democratic precinct committeeman for Dunham Township.

My training in law and finance, along with my prior service as an elected official, establish me as a particularly well-qualified candidate.

I have been a resident of rural Harvard for thirty-three years.

The minor league baseball stadium that McHenry County College Trustees and President Walt Packard wanted property taxpayers to finance, if the team promotrers failed.

An attorney in solo private practice, I also hold a masters degree in business administration from Northwestern University.

I served as a trustee at McHenry County College between 2005-2009.

Voters will recall that during a particularly trying time for the College, I established myself as a principled public servant, highly regarded throughout the county for my independence and my integrity.

But enough about me for the present.

Let’s talk about us.

Each and every one of us is proud to be a citizen of McHenry County.

And for good reason: our location, our resources, and our people make it a highly desirable place in which to live.

And yet — problems and perils lie ahead.

I expect that the coming several years will be momentous ones for all of McHenry County.

Many difficult and fateful choices await us in the areas of economic development, land use, transportation, and water supply (to name just a few).

And in order to preserve our cherished ways of living, our county board will have to make some very tough calls on some highly complex issues.

We all know, however, that in these difficult economic times, county finances and taxation have emerged as our most pressing priorities.

It is imperative that we minimize our collective tax burdens while simultaneously squeezing one hundred cents of value out of each tax dollar.

To this end, I pledge my every effort to fiscal responsibility, and to a county government that is both efficient and economical.

It will take the collective wisdom — and courage — of twenty-four shrewd and smart board members to make the right choices for our McHenry County.

I respectfully ask that you make me one of them.

Please elect me to a District 6 seat on the McHenry County Board.

Sincerely,

Scott Summers
Website (pending): www.SummersForMcHenry6.org