Mailed Sample Ballot Arrives

I haven’t noted this year that the post office continues to play the role of precinct worker.

Think of how much dedicated manpower that candidates would have to have if all the post cards and other literature you receive in the mail had to be delivered by a volunteer or a paid precinct walker.

This Saturday, I received an “Authorized Republican Official Sample Ballot.”

That’s what the heading says.

All the candidates are not on the sample ballot, however.

Just the endorsed ones, whose names follow:

  • States Attorney – Patrick Kenneally
  • Circuit Court Judge – Demetri Tsilimigras
  • County Board Chairman – Michael J. Walkup
  • County Recorder – Joe Tirio
  • District 1 (County Board) – Yvonne M. Barnes and Tom Wilbeck
  • District 2 – Jeffery T. Thorsen
  • District 3 – Michael J. Walkup and Nick Provenzano
  • District 4 – Kay Bates and Craig Wilcox
  • District 5 – Andrew “Andy” Snarski

Underneath people are advised to “Remove and take to the polls for reference.”

Sample Ballot Mailing Address 3-5-16And, who is the mailing from?

McHenry County Republicans for Better Government, which has filed campaign disclosure reports with the Illinois State Board of Elections.

Names signing a not on the address side are

Phillip Peterson, Karen Tirio, Eileen Marhoefer, Henry Goetz, Jennifer Weinhammer, Jim Magel, Michele Schermer, Bob Zalud, John Brytke, Frank Haslwanter, Lou Anne Majewski, Chris Covelli, Donna Kurtz “and many, many more…”

The back side has photos of the candidates the group is endorsing.

On the top is the headline, “McHenry County Republicans.”

Just below one can read, “Join over 100 Precinct Committeeman, Candidates and Elected Officials in supporting Republicans with the Courage and Integrity to Reduce Our Taxes!!” [Emphasis in the original.]

If one looks are the photos of the countywide officials, the one that stands out is for Joe Tirio. That's because his photo shows his face larger than the others.

If one looks are the photos of the countywide officials, the one that stands out is for Joe Tirio. That’s because his photo shows his face larger than the others.

The only officer of the committee is Michael J McCleary, who works as an investigator for McHenry County State’s Attorney Lou Bianchi.

The committee stated out the year with less than $200.

Large contributions were made since then follow:

  • $2,000 – Thomas Cooper, Retired, Wonder Lake
  • $1,000 – Ronald Salgado, Chief Investigator, McHenry County State’s Attorney’s Office, McHenry
  • $1,000 – Citizens to Elect Lou Bianchi
  • $1,000 – Citizens for Patrick Kenneally

Comments

Mailed Sample Ballot Arrives — 23 Comments

  1. Brought to you by the same politicians trying to bring this county down.

    Thanksa now I know who NOT to vote for

  2. WOW just WOW! . . so many conservatives on one mailing, WOW just WOW!

  3. Wow is right, David.

    I’m overwhelmed that a group for better govt. and over 100 PCs got together to endorse all the candidates I’ve endorsed after doing a lot of research/going to every meet and greet I could attend, every forum and fundraisers.

    To see they feel the same way I do is great.

    I didn’t expect it, but am so glad they’re in alignment with all my research.

    I know and respect Mike McCleary.

    He does things right and does things when they should be done. (Not like in my township!)

    I love NorWood’s group and go just to get inspired as to how things could be done in my precinct if we had the right Leadership.

  4. Authorized Official Republican Ballot sounds deceiving who is authorized to issue official ballot surely this looks like or is made to look like the McHeny County Republican Party put this out

    Sandy did you authorize this mailing?

  5. Excellent group of candidates!

    I couldn’t agree more.

    This group of elected officials will give government back to the taxpayers.

    I firmly believe it!!!!

    I’m proud to say I received a letter from my committeeman supporting everyone included in this handout.

    Glad to see the Republican Party come together to support genuine, reliable candidates!

  6. WOW Joe Tirio looks like u eatting your words again!!! u said u were against Cronyism? WOW Before this race you have never been a part of the Republican Party.WOW

  7. WOW this is crazy watch out McHenry County

    We just hope they start investigate the McHenry County Board

    The McHenry County Board Members can make 40000.00 plus per year and work 600 hours this is part time work only in McHenry County

  8. It doesn’t look like they included Dist. 6.

    Great group of candidates.

    If they included Dist 6 I’m sure Kelly Liebmann would have been included .

  9. Nick, your “argument” is formally known as the “straw man fallacy”.

    That’s where someone accuses his opponent of saying or supporting something that person never said, usually creating a false weak position, easy to defeat (hence the term “straw man” because it’s easy to knock down), and then proceeding to “defeat” it.

    It’s a fallacy, a failure to reason correctly, because it is false.

    In your case, you accuse Joe Tirio of saying something he never said.

    Then you beat him up over it.

    And your arguments are not just weak, they’re downright silly.

    Whether Joe was formally active in the Republican party is irrelevant to him choosing to run for Republican nomination for Recorder.

    And then you try to conflate being endorsed by someone as being cronyism.

    That’s also false.

    Cronyism would be HIRING people based on the favors done.

    That’s not happened here.

  10. Most of the time spent by Board Members is on committee work. Some members have 8 committee meeting per month in addition to the two full Board meetings and other special Board meetings, plus constituent service.

    IMRF determined that putting all of this together, does amount to 1000 hours per year, the minimum required to be eligible for pension benefits.

    The Chairman, however, is not a member of any committees, and yet is paid over $100,000 in salary and benefits.

    He is, apparently able, moreover, to handle the entire job while simultaneously operating a full time law practice, and almost never being seen inside the county administration building using the cavernous office provided.

    Once the new Chairman is installed, if he is not a Board member, he will be able to skip reading the Board packets as he will not have to vote on anything during full Board meetings either.

    Then, when he retires, he will be entitled to a pension based on the Chairman’s salary, rather than on a combination of the Board Member salary and Chairman salary, which would lower the figure.

    To use one example, a Board Chairman who serves for only two years, but was a Board Member earning $21,000 for the previous 8 years, has the pension computed as if he had earned the Chairman’s salary the entire time.

    If anything should be investigated as to pension eligibility, it should be the Board Chairman.

  11. Great group..

    Have my total support and I am out in my community yesterday and today..talking with the voters..

    And boy do we have a great group of Conservatives out here in District 6…

  12. But if the candidates you don’t support did something this deceiving you’d all be screaming about it.

  13. The salary is $21,000.

    Benefits have raised some members’ compensation close to double that.

  14. Does the mailer remove all doubt that there is a real dislike for the western part of the County?

    Only two Board candidates in D-6 who would actually REPRESENT the taxpayers:

    Schuster and Liebmann.

    The other three are prime supporters of another Randall Rd. project further west!!

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