Sandra Salgado Re-Elected McHenry County Republican Party Chairman

Sandra Salgado addresses the Precinct Committeemen after her re-election.

Sandra Salgado addresses the Precinct Committeemen after her re-election.

In an uncontested election, McHenry County Republican Party Chairman Sandra Salgado was re-elected by acclamation.

After her nomination by Ken Cabay, no other names were put forward.

The rest of the meeting was anti-climatic as Salgado’s choices were elected in similar fashion.

The only change from two years ago was the selection of McHenry Township Republican Party Chairman Steve Rooney to replace newly-elected Algonquin Township Republican Central Committee Chairman Andrew Gasser as Vice Chairman.

McHenry County Board member Chuck Wheeler will continue as Treasurer.

Retiring McHenry County Board member Diane Evertsen will continue as Party Secretary.

Salgado called for unity now that the Primary Election is over.

Addressing the acrimony prior to the primary, she said, “There’s not room for nastiness in McHenry County politics.”

She specifically pointed to comments on an unnamed blog.

She expressed her opinion that there is a real opportunity to elect Steve Reick over incumbent Democrat Jack Franks.

The room was packed.

The crowd at Republican Convention Wednesday night.

The crowd at Republican Convention Wednesday night.

Every seat was not taken, but plenty of people were standing in the rear of the room.

 


Comments

Sandra Salgado Re-Elected McHenry County Republican Party Chairman — 30 Comments

  1. Good to see Andrew ‘sported’ a tie. Improvement from two years ago.

  2. This comment has little to do with the event last night but I think it might be of interest to any who are ‘politically active’.

    I frequently hear of people leaving this state because of taxes.

    Are taxes too high? Of course.

    Most taxes are high because of the ‘demand’ for services.

    You can’t have Kids First insurance programs without funding. You can’t have a 708 Board without taxes.

    You can’t transfer tax dollars to NGO Not For Profits without collecting taxes.

    You can’t have guaranteed public sector pensions and higher salaries for teachers / administrators and more Open Space and tax funded recrational areas and bike paths etc. etc. etc. without taxing those who still work and / or own property

    BUT!

    How does Illinois compare to other states?

    Go to this link: https://wallethub.com/edu/states-with-highest-lowest-tax-burden/20494/#scott-lazenby

    Illinois ranks 10th in the country – right behind Wisconsin which is 9th. New York State is the worst.

    Indiana ranks 16th.

    Iowa ranks 17th.

    Now that most of the County GOP committeemen dust has settled, let us all unite and elect Steve Reick.

    It is time for this County to send a LOUD message to Michael Madigan and the Democrats plus the’lean across the aisle’ Republicans who who are adamant that ILLINOIS TAXPAYERS MUST PAY MORE!!

    Also, do not forget the Democrats have other candidates going up against Republicans for other County Board offices and may soon announce a candidate for County Board Chair.

  3. Gotta have bike paths too you know.

    Great exercise for our seniors and single moms!

  4. I suspect that the Democrats are going to run ‘stealth’ candidates in the sense that they will not announce who their selections are and will have people quietly going around collecting signatures instead of making a grand announcement.

    This means that we may not hear anything until June.

    There may also be multiple candidates circulating petitions to throw off the rumor mill.

    The Fall election, like the primary, is going to be all about TURNOUT.

    WHO shows up will determine the outcomes.

    Most of this will depend on the Presidential candidates, which is something we cannot control.

    However, the constant on the local level is TAXES.

    People’s LOCAL PROPERTY taxes are not going to change up or down based on Washington.

    That is going to be determined by who is in office at the local level.

    We need to get out a simple and consistent message.

    I would suggest something like this: “WHO DO YOU TRUST MORE TO LOWER YOUR PROPERTY TAXES?”

    People should be told that, regardless of how they feel about the Presidential selections, they SHOULD NOT SIT HOME OR THEIR LOCAL PROPERTY TAXES WILL GO UP IF DEMOCRATS ARE ELECTED AT THE LOCAL LEVEL.

    Remind them that we are already in the TOP ONE PERCENT OF THE NATION in local property taxes.

    If Democrats are elected at the local level we are going to be in the “top ten percent of the top one percent” (shades of Sanders).

    This message has to be delivered by 200 people going door to door. We can’t just rely on mailers and signs.

    If all of the people who were in that room last night do this, we will win.

    This is going to be a very volatile election.

    ANYONE CAN WIN.

    Nothing can be taken for granted.

    I am putting together a comprehensive precinct campaign that will benefit all of the GOP candidates, starting NOW.

    Talk to me. 815/477-8978. Website: http://www.WalkupElection.com. FB: Walkup4McHenryCountyChair

    We will only win if you DO SOMETHING!

    If you do nothing, you will be feeding the donkey for the next four years.

  5. Mr. Walkup:
    Re: “I am putting together a comprehensive precinct campaign that will benefit all of the GOP candidates, starting NOW. ”

    Are you duplicating what the McHenry Gounty GOP does?

  6. No, CV, I am working with them.

    As Sandra said, we need to get EVERYONE on board regardless of who they supported in the primary.

    We also, frankly, need to recognize, that some people did more than others.

    I owe my nomination to those who got out and did things in their precincts.

    I spent very little money. I did no countywide mailing.

    It was all shoe leather by myself and dozens of others.

    Now that we are up against a common enemy, we need to all pull together, and everyone needs to do their part.

    There was no comprehensive field operation in the primary election that was county wide, for either GOP faction.

    What we had were pockets of people who were active, and candidates who each had their own groups of volunteers and did their own thing independently of one another.

    This led to much duplication of effort and inefficiencies.

    This is not a reflection on the Party as the Party is supposed to stay out of the primary races.

    However, we can’t afford to repeat that in the general election.

    This election is going to be about Getting Out The Vote, or “GOTV”.

    The local GOP in this county in the past has never had to do that and hasn’t done it.

    The Democrats have gone from a hopeless minority party in the county to a group that is in genuine contention in part because they HAVE been doing the grass roots organizing.

    What The GOP has always had before are a bunch of primary free for alls, followed by cake walks in the general election.

    This is all about to change.

    The national dynamics of this year are going to throw everything up for grabs.

    Remember, Obama WON McHenry County in 2008 by four percentage point.

    There were coattails that brought Democrats onto the county board. There is a Democrat assessor in McHenry Township.

    There are closet Democrats on municipal boards, non partisan township boards, school boards.

    Bernie Sanders won McHenry County in the Democratic Primary by 2 to 1 over Clinton.

    All or almost all of the activists in McHenry County Democratic Party are Sanders supporters.

    It is those same people from whom the candidate selections will be drawn.

    If they are elected to the county board, they will start pursuing the redistributive Sanders policies.

    Make no mistake about it.

    This will be relfected in all of our property tax bills.

    It already is in terms of the schools. Who do you think it is that runs for school board?

    I know this because I used to be in the McHenry County Democratic Party.

    I know Mike Bisset, Paula Yensen, and Nick Chirikos extremely well.

    Chirikos had Sanders signs in his yard.

    The Democrats want us to sleep through the Spring and Summer and will then unleash their grass roots operation that have spent the Summer building on us in the Fall.

    This will be coupled by what could be a Wave, or at least a very confused situation, in favor of the Democrats this year due to national politics.

    They can then ride that wave to victory after victory in the local elections.

    The GOP cannot afford to take a nap.

    That’s all I’m saying.

  7. Susan Handelsman and Steve Willson have numerous times suggested what they consider as an obvious solution to our property tax problems in this county, put a Tax Rate Cap. 2.5%.

    Right here on this blog Susan said:

    “It is doable, but in McHenry County there is intractable resistance to doing it.”

    So I guess I’d want to know why we are so resistant to logical local suggestions.

    Why hasn’t any of our elected embraced this concept, why haven’t the Republican Party leadership embraced this or at least try to work in that direction?

    There really should be a referendum on this concept, and also a willingness to give up some service levels to obtain that goal.

    The resistance to this type of change is because we really don’t want to give up some services and many times actually want more services.

    Elected officials often do nothing, and seem to fight any attempt to rein in their power to raise taxes and levies.

    Time to take that power away; it’s been a problem since this nation was formed.

    Time we are given that power by allowing us to vote on referendums regularly on all tax increases and levy changes, with a 2/3 vote of approval for any changes.

    Anybody know a good lawyer willing to write some of these proposals in referendum form?

    Action speaks louder that just lip service.

    Fact!!!!

  8. How about you Mike Walkup write up a referendum?

    You’re running for the leadership of the county, how about showing some real leadership qualities and get this on that concept for the November election.

    Also the idea of a referendum of reducing the county board size should also address the wages, pensions and healthcare at the same time.

    THX!

  9. Republicans need to crystalize around what they are “for” …. not this amorphous “We’re against Democrats.”

    That means getting into hot button issues … NOT shying away and putting on a ‘happy face’ emoji.

    The reason why the Republican base is enchanted with ‘outsiders’ like Trump and Cruz is that they are sick and tired of RINOs who purr about ‘unity,’ ‘diversity,’ ‘national security,’ and other namby-pamby shibboleths and don’t do a damn thing about reversing all the rotten policies of Demo-Republirat War Party.

    The Republican Base is ready to BLOW!

    The days of the fatcat elites who’ve mismanaged things with designated losers like McCain, Romney and Little Jebbie Bush are coming to a long-suppressed close.

  10. Nob: We are working on the referendum as we speak.

    That initiative came out of our staff meeting a couple of weeks ago from Joe, and I put in the number I thought we should use, which is 12.

    It has stalled a bit in committee as there are a lot of ramifications for Board organization that flow from the number that you use.

    Other members wanted to have some further discussion and get the minutes of the task force which looked into this two years ago and in which I had participated. We have time on this and I fully expect something to be on the ballot for the Fall. If it isn’t done by the Board, I will circulate a petition myself.

    I agree completely with OMW.

    On the local level, however, our issues are more limited and mainly revolve around taxation and spending on local projects.

    The underlying philosophies of each Party feed into the answers to those questions and is why it is relevant which Party you vote for.

    Mr. Chirikos, for example, was quoted at a candidate forum in 2014 saying that he didn’t think our property taxes here were too high.

    He also consistently voted in favor of the unions, which drive up our labor costs.

    We are even being sued by one of the unions right now.

    If the Democrats take over the County Board as a result of these Fall elections, which is well within the realm of possibility, you can expect this type of philosophy to rule the day.

    Remember, based on the 2008 vote totals, half of the voters in McHenry County are actually Democrats, they just don’t all usually vote.

    This year, they may, and Republicans may stay home because they don’t like the Presidential candidate that comes out of Cleveland.

    It’s a recipe for possible disaster.

  11. Mike, what about the Susan and Steve proposal, the big picture not just the small side issues like Dave Mc just got passed?

    Not so much for you but in general, school board elections need more realistic people on those boards, fewer or no yes dudes.

    Many think it’s dirty word to be labeled as a Progressive, but a Progressive Republican Party is just what we need, not more same old same old.

    Last time I voted for President it was not for the Rep candidate because that party has not been fiscally responsible, especially when they controlled the whole game.

    I voted for ex NM governor Gary Johnson, a person who actually balanced that states budget with a Dem majority in their legislature.

    I looks like that will be the case again as Balanced Budget Amendments seem to not be on the Rep Party agenda anymore.

    I sleep better at nights not pinching my nose and voting for any Debt Enlarging Maniacs candidates.

    Since both sides are really not different fiscally, both sides hold that label.

  12. Nob: It looks like we are finally starting to agree on things.

    Part of the big picture IS to look at next year’s elections, townships and others, and Andy has that as a goal in AL Township.

    I had voted against a candidate to MCCD board, and took some flak, because no one had even applied except for one person, and I hoped that we could get it tabled to allow some tax conscious people to have a further chance to apply.

    None did.

    We have three candidates this time and will be interviewing them shortly.

    People run for school board because they like schools, park boards because they like parks, library boards because they like libraries, township boards because they like townships, etc. etc.

    Then they become reliable Yes votes for whatever the respective bureaucracy puts in front of them.

    If you do manage to get one or two more tax conscious people on board, they tend to be in the minority and then the bureaucrats just wait it out until the next election when they quit in frustration.

    We have the chance now, for the first time that I can recall, to actually have a majority of those types of people elected to the County Board.

    We just need to keep the Democrats from spoiling things.

    First things first.

  13. Mike Walkup is a lot of talk or I should say hot air just like gas bag you to are made for each other.

    The only people who run for elections seems to be misfits.

    They cannot hold a regular job or fail to be successful but can hide under the political cloak so they only come out during election time have some sound bites and then hide from the public.

    It is a sad day for McHenry County to have the first chairman as a rhino as you have already said you were with the Democratic Party and the only reason you went republican is because you could not win as a democrat.

  14. Pablo is correct in a general sense … that’s why Illinois, and the country really, is in such a pathetic fix. I hope his criticism is misplaced as to his Walkup-target.

    Let’s give Walkup a real and fair chance.

    And that means the defeat of Walkup’s likely opposition, the ogress Yensen, in November.

    Then we’ll see just what Mr. Walkup tries and actually does succeed.

    But Senor Pablo, be realistic, too.

    Walkup’s County Bd Chairmanship’s actual power is rather limited … but that’s no excuse for not trying!

  15. Mike Walkup, it is a collective effort and we don’t need anyone riding in on a white horse.

    Leave the horses at the trough.

    Please!

    And, I think it is silly to say that one person did more than others.

    Everyone, needs to do their part.

    If you want to recognize the people who who got out and worked their precincts then do that, but we don’t need comparisons.

    The fact is, the people are a part of the election process to create change and reform in government.

    The people are not a part of the election process for the accolades and if they are, they are in the wrong arena.

    This takes a community.

  16. Fighting corruption Mike Walkip thinks he is the one riding the white horse and make no mistake if he wins you will see the real power monger for it is only about the money and the power he has failed in his marriage and failed in his business so nowhere else to go but politics

  17. Run on sentence there Stand.

    Since you are supposed standing for, you know, “truth”, but are otherwise anonymous, let me just say this:

    I don’t need the Chairman’s job for the money.

    I am good in that department.

    My law practice is not “failed”.

    I do just fine, thank you.

    I have had some health problems, which derailed me for a time, but I have done my best to overcome them.

    When Life hands you lemons, open up a lemonade stand.

    I will not go into personal issues such as my recent divorce.

    Things happen over which people have no control.

    I don’t envision using the “power” to “monger”.

    On the contrary, I want to disburse the power, such as it is, to allow more collaborative efforts by all of the Board Members in setting policy.

    I plan on being as inclusive as possible if elected, and have already started reaching out to others, including those with whom I have been at odds in the past.

    I am the one who sponsored changes to the Board Rules to deprive the Chairman of some of the traditional powers of that office, so individual Board Members can have more of a say.

    I am the one who made sure that the Board Chairman who is also a Board Member, could not double dip in terms of salary.

    I am the one who spearheaded the successful effort to allow Board Members to pick committee chairs and members rather than unilaterally by the Chairman.

    I worked with other members to help reform the Mental Health Board, which had basically been running amok for many years.

    I helped stop the Continuous Flow Intersection at Randall and 62 and the $2.6 Million roundabout on rural Charles and Raffel Roads which has now gone back to the drawing board.

    I am sensitive to peoples’ concerns about the pension and health benefits issues and am working on a solution.

    I hope be more of a broker between competing interests and try to bring us together behind shared goals.

    Those goals are reducing taxes, making government run more like a business, consolidating government functions and eliminating obsolete forms of government, being open and transparent, preserving the local environment, balancing growth, and also, reducing taxes.

    Oh yes, and reducing taxes.

    Sometimes when you try to do this, you step on some toes.

    Right now I am stepping on the toes of some municipalities in trying to get them to contribute to traffic problems which they have caused on county owned roads which happen to traverse their areas.

    No one has ever looked at this before and tried to do what I am trying to do.

    Those municipal officials are not happy with me at the moment, including Paula Yensen’s LITH Village Board.

    I hope everyone who posts here, who I expect are all Republicans, will support me and the other Board candidates who emerged from the primary elections achieve those goals, which I believe all of us share.

    If you are going to poke at the GOP candidates at this juncture, I think it is fair to assume that you are Democrats.

    After the elections, please hold us to our promises.

  18. “STAND4TRUTH” Your statements are just more muddled garbage, and I don’t agree with you.

    This is just an opportunity for you to attack an opponent.

    Just because I don’t agree with one of his statements, does not mean that I do not support him.

    Mike Walkup, will bring much needed reform to McHenry County Government.

  19. Just one final comment.

    The GOP Primary Election is OVER!

    I can understand that people wanted to take potshots at other Republicans during that process and used this Blog to do so.

    We are now done with that, or should be.

    We need to get out of that mode.

    I did not support all of the candidates who won their primary races.

    That no longer matters.

    EVERYONE who is going to be going forward on the GOP ticket for the November 8 election has my Full, Complete, Unequivocal, Uncompromised, and Total Support.

    Period.

    I look forward to helping you ALL.

    Now let’s go forward and Stop The Democrats!

  20. Mike you didn’t even get close to answering my question about Susan and Steve’s 2.5% deal.

    Will you at least comment on it, even a good waltz would be better than ignoring me, which you should know by now is not the best option as I can be the Ever Ready Bunny on riding politicians. 🙂

    I agree the comments have been over the top at times, and could care the least if you were a Dem, what have you done lately and in the future is what I will measure you by.
    Remaining silent as in the past should never be a option either.

    In honesty I voted for Carter and Clinton once, looking back at the amount of added debt during a Presidents term in office, both look good compared to RR, HW, and W.

    BO is the worst for adding total debt, and I am sure glad I didn’t vote for him.

    Anyway, what about that question?

  21. I would need to talk to Steve some more about exactly what that would entail.

    Can we count you to be on board for the coming election period?

    Anyone who continues to carp at the GOP nominees at this point is a Democrat operative.

  22. There I go again you are right.

    I am asking you like them nob what isnyournposition.

    Silence will not work what is.

    Your position. ?

  23. Ask Cal who the Democratic Party of Mchenry County is running.

    Nothing is being hidden.

    Cal knows who is running but he isn’t telling because he hasn’t anything snide or rude to say.

    That is the problem as I see it.

    That McHenry County GOP has gotten so dirty and personal and it is going to be hard to unite and appear united to voters who will be getting a solid positive message from the Dems.

    It appears unfavorable to voters for someone to accuse another member of sleeping their way to the top and question their values and air dirty laundry then have that same person say they are fully supporting the person they just tore into and their good judgement.

    Voters dont forget that crap.

    The county Dems aren’t doing that nor do they tear each other down in mailings and editorials for voters.

    I am sure that money isnt going to be an advantage against their grassroots efforts.

    The demographics are changing and becoming liberal.

  24. Perhaps Martha will share with us the names of those who are going to be slated by the Democrats.

    I do not know.

  25. No Mike not a Dem by a long shot, or a Rep either although I lean a tad right.

    I’m your SHADOW, and I’m good at that JOB. 🙂

  26. Walkup is an opportunist-

    He is looking for you to do the job to ensure he gets a paycheck.

    Transparent.

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