From the campaign of Jake Justen:
Jake Justen Mounting Write-In Campaign for Crystal Lake City Council
Jake Justen, 38 of Crystal Lake, is mounting a write-in campaign for Crystal Lake City Council.
The election will be held on Tuesday, April 1.
“The primary issue I see is taxes,” Justen said.
“Last spring the city council voted to increase the city sales tax by half a percent on a vote of 6-1. This was on the same night the county sales tax was increased by a quarter percent by referendum.”
According to the Northwest Herald, the sales tax in Crystal Lake is now the highest in the county.
In late November, a new proposed tax was added to the December meeting agenda, which would have created a new tax on storage unit rentals.
“The tax on storage unit rentals would have negatively impacted lower income residents, who make up a large portion of customers,” according to local storage facility owners.
“This also would have created a burden on the local business owners who would have been tasked with collecting the tax.
“Thankfully, this was removed from the agenda.”
Justen says that every new tax and tax increase is a burden, both on residents and business owners in Crystal Lake.
“Taxes increase the cost of living and operating a business.
“Residents are having to adjust their budgets to deal with inflation and high energy costs; it’s time the government did the same, instead of increasing the tax burden.”
Justen has actively campaigned against tax increase referendums throughout his time in McHenry County.
Justen has lived in McHenry County his entire life and in Crystal Lake since 2009.
He and his wife have 3 children. Justen is active in Scouting America/Scouts BSA with two of his children,
serving as treasurer for a local troop.
He is active as a parishioner at St. Thomas the Apostle Church in Crystal Lake.
He has worked as an analyst at a local bank for more than 15 years.
Justen currently serves as the chairman of the McHenry County Libertarian Party, first elected to the position in February 2024. He previously served as vice chair, from 2017-2024.
He has previously run for D155 School Board in 2019 and for County Board in District 2 as the Libertarian nominee in 2022.
To vote for Justen: on a paper ballot, fill in the bubble next to the write-in line and handwrite
“Jake Justen” on the line.
On an electronic voting machine, tap the “write-in” option and type “Jake Justen”.
