Former St. Charles Mayor to Replace Karen McConnaughay as State Senate Candidate

Don DeWitte

Holding the majority of votes in State Rep. Karen McConnaughay’s State Senate District, Kane County Republican Party Chairman Ken Shepro decided to appoint former St. Charles  City Councilman and Mayor Don DeWitte to replace her.

Having a decidedly minority vote in the State Senate District, McHenry County Republican Party Chairman Diane Evertsen went along with the program.

DeWitte is now Kane County’s Regional Transportation Authority Board member.

McConnaughay is reportedly thinking about stepping down from her seat early.

At least that is what the Daily Herald says.

Below is his RTA Board biography:

Donald P. DeWitte was appointed to the Board of Directors of the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) in September 2013, representing Kane County. He serves on the Audit and Finance committees.

Mr. DeWitte has more than 20 years of municipal and regional administrative experience.

He served as alderman in the City of St. Charles from 1993 until he was elected mayor in 2005.

He retired from that post in May.

During his tenure as mayor, Mr. DeWitte oversaw several major infrastructure projects in St. Charles, including the largest public works infrastructure project in the city’s history, the Red Gate Bridge, and the redevelopment of the St. Charles Downtown Riverfront Business District.

In 2011, St. Charles was recognized by Family Circle magazine as the “Number One City for Families” in the nation.

Mr. DeWitte currently serves as Vice President of Wine Sergi Insurance, an independent commercial insurance brokerage firm, and is also a partner and designer with Professional Kitchen Designs, a kitchen and bath remodeling firm based in St. Charles.

He has been active in several regional organizations, including serving as president of the MetroWest Council of Government, comprised of mayors and administrators from Kane, Kendall, and DeKalb counties; the DuPage Mayors and Managers Conference; and the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus.

Mr. DeWitte is a lifelong Kane County resident.

Mr. DeWitte attended Elgin Community College and the University of Illinois Springfield (UIS) Leadership Enhancement and Development (LEAD) program, in conjunction with the Illinois Municipal League.

Applicants for the seat were

  • State Rep. Allen Skillicorn – East Dundee
  • Don DeWitte –former  St. Charles Mayor, now Kane County’s RTA Board member
  • State Rep. Steve Andersson – Geneva, who announced he was not running for re-election after leading the effort to find Republicans to override the Governor’s veto of the Democratic Party’s income tax, plus gathering GOP votes to pass the Equal Rights Amendment.
  • Carolyn Schofield – Crystal Lake, who is running for the McHenry County Board and who ran unsuccessfully for State Rep. two years ago, carrying McHenry County.
  • Laura Pollastrini – Hampshire, formerly active in DuPage County GOP politics (she ran against Jeanne Ives for State Rep.)
  • Mike McMahon – Elgin, a retired Chicago firefighter

Comments

Former St. Charles Mayor to Replace Karen McConnaughay as State Senate Candidate — 4 Comments

  1. So both Kane County Chairman Ken Shepro and McHenry County Chairwoman Diane Evertsen unanimously backed an open pro choice candidate to be the only pro abortion republican in the Senate once Althoff leaves?

    One step forward, two steps back.

  2. So is this guy running in 2018 or did Republicans just hand this seat over to the Democrats? I see his name is still not listed on the board of elections website. If he’s not running, don’t even bother appointing him and wasting money paying him. The term will be up in a few months and his vote doesn’t matter.

  3. He’s a total loser. One of those ‘Fiscal conservative, but social libs” like Reick.

  4. Does anybody have anything good to say about Don DeWitte?

    I would like to know if and how he supports President Donald Trump.

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